Life As Their Kids
by FutureNovelist887
Summary: So...a shot in the dark here. Percy and Annabeth, getting married, their kids, and just their general lives. A little bit of suspense mashed with fluffy romance and a bit of thriller. May change later, not sure. And the monster doesn't play a huge part, so when you come to it, please don't think I'm going to revolve around it. : Peace love and God bless!
1. The Proposal

**A/N: *sigh* I'm an awful author. I felt I've failed with all of this before, but I'm determined to give it one more shot. **

**Now, I know that I've attempted this before with 'Daughter of a Demigod' and 'Daughter of a Demigod Two: The Next Powerful Stride' (which has an extremely bad title...)**

**Soo...I guess just let me know what you all think. I'm happy for any ideas you might have afterwards, because I might be slow on some. And updates? I'm not promising anything...**

**~Future (Who feels extremely bad about all of this...((as in, deleting some stories I felt just weren't going any where...)). )**

**Me: Sooo..hi, ya'll. You probably all hate me for being a terrible author, and leaving stories behind in the dust, but I've left those up that I've wrote previously, and the Holmes / Watson thing. Sorry, but the HQ was just getting overly crowded, and I'm going to try to do a LOT better this time...**

**Di: Oh, hush! You're still awesome!**

**Me: *sigh* Whatever...Disclaimer, please?**

**Di: *rolls eyes, crosses arms* Fine. She doesn't own PJO. **

**Me: Let us begin...**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Percy's POV<strong>_

The wedding was beautiful.

It was on a beach, my favorite place, and every one was there - even Annabeth's mom. She still hadn't come to full terms with all of this, but at least she was here. I knew that would make Annabeth happy, and that's all I wanted to do on that day. Make Annabeth happy.

When I first proposed, I was extremely nervous. Mom told me not to be, that Annabeth was a great girl and all, and that she would absoulutely say yes. I knew she probably would, but I was still nervous.

I mean, I'm not called Seaweed Brain for nothing.

I decided to do it really cheesy and classical - but with a demigod twist. I took her out on the beach at Camp Half-Blood. The water was just right, lapping the shore gently in a swaying breeze. It smelled of sweet salt and Annabeth's perfume.

Speaking of Annabeth...God, she was amazing. Her blonde hair, as usual, was pulled into a long, princess curled ponytail. She wore a white sun dress which hung just below her knees. She was bare foot, allowing her toes to sink deep into the sand.

"It's a beautiful night," she commented, sitting down and gazing up to the stars. There were no clouds in the sky that night.

I nodded my head fast-like. "Yeah," I mumbled. "It is." I sat beside her, looking at the picnic basket I had brought, filled with some of her favorite foods, and, of course, the thing that would engage us.

She looked at me, her grey eyes piercing. "You okay?" Annabeth asked, intertwining our fingers. I smiled and nodded.

"I'm fine," I said, looking up to the stars as well. "Look," I said, pointing as a falling star streaked by.

Annabeth was amazed. "That's breath taking," she said, sighing happily. I looked at her, smiling.

_Do it, _something told me. _Do it and do it now. _

"Uhm, Annabeth?" I asked, my mouth suddenly dry. She turned to me, a huge smile on her face, her grey eyes light and happy.

"Yeah, Perce?" She questioned, still smiling.

"Will...will..." I gulped, trying to get whatever was blocking the words in my throat out of the way. I needed to do this.

"Will what?" Annabeth suddenly seemed worried. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Just fine," I said. "But, Annabeth, what I really wanted to ask was...Will you...will you, please hand me the picnic basket." I said like a total idiot. She looked at me funny, but nodded, and handed me the basket. I mentally slapped myself.

I gulped again. _No stopping this time. _I placed the basket down beside me, reaching in and grabbing the box which held the ring in it. "Annabeth, sorry about that." I started, grabbing her hand again. "But what I really wanted to ask was, will you ma - "

She gasped, looking up at the sky. "Percy! Look at that! It's Hayley's comet!" She stood to get a better look at it, and I sighed.

I got beat by a comet. Go figure.

"Really?" I asked, trying to sound intrigued, but my only thought was on the ring in my hand. Tyson had worked a while to build it, just for me. It was a pearl, of course, made from scratch. I really hoped Annabeth would like it.

"Yes," she smiled. "It's amazing. It only comes around once every seventy-five years." She leaned her head on my shoulder. "Isn't it just amazing?"

"Yeah, Annabeth. It's magnificent." Her storm clouded eyes looked into my sea green ones.

"What was that you were asking me?" Annabeth said, grinning, her skin glowing in the moonlight.

I smiled again. "Annabeth, I was just wondering, would you ma - "

"Percy!" She shouted again, sitting back down in the sand to watch as some baby sea turtles scuddled to the water. "Did you know that turtles follow the moonlight when looking for the ocean?" She asked, gesturing me forward. "Oh, if only we had some flashlights, we could help them find it sooner."

I bent down beside her, watching them.

"You like sea turtles, huh?" I asked. She nodded happily.

"They're astonishing creatures, Percy," she breathed. "I just can't believe it! I've always wanted a chance to study them closely as they walked to the ocean."

"I'm glad you were able to see it, Annabeth," I said, smiling at her.

Annabeth blushed a little. "Me, too, Percy."

I took a deep breath. It was getting later than I had intended, and if we weren't careful the Harpies could catch us. I looked at Annabeth, how she was smiling, watching the turtles with great interest.

_Now, idiot! _Something screamed at me. I let the breath go, and tapped Annabeth on the back. "Annie?"

"Yeah, Perc - " she paused mid-sentence when she saw I was on one knee, the box held open, the pearl glinting even more so in the moonlight. "Percy?" She asked quietly. "Are you - ?"

"Annabeth, I've known you for a long time," I began. "Since we were twelve. That was twelve years ago. And I've been in love ever since, even if I was too much of a Seaweed Brain to realize it." She giggled at that, and tried to say something, but I shh'ed her. "But...I just can't stand the thought any more - of never being by your side, of never having you fighting beside me, and having my back when I make mistakes. Which can sometimes be a lot,"

Annabeth smiled, laughing quietly.

"So, Annie, I guess what I've been beating around the bush to get here was..." I paused, taking one more breath. "Annabeth Chase, my Wise Girl from forever on, will you marry me?"

The question hung in the air like a the fresh scent of freshly baked cookies - short lived.

Annabeth, surprisingly, threw her arms around me. "Yes!" She said happily. Annabeth backed away and I slipped the ring unto her finger. With a smile still plastered on her face she said, "And it's about time, anyway."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "It took me long enough to find the ring." I said.

Annabeth glanced at it, holding up to her face to see. "How'd you get this?" She finally asked after moments of staring at the shinning surface.

I smirked. "Dad...with a little help from Tyson of course."

She laughed at that, then hugged me again, crashing her pink lips upon mine.

And I had that feeling again - as if my brain were melting through my body.

It was the second best kiss of all time.

* * *

><p><strong>So, I guess I'll have the wedding next chapter...Sorry...I'm just starting this, and I don't know how to start it. Sorry..<strong>

**God, this sucks...Oh, well. I'm shooting in the dark. :)**

**Enjoy, **

**~Future**


	2. A Wedding of Fairytales

**A/N: Sooo...did you hate? Enjoy? Neither? Eh...annnyyyywwwaaaayyyy...**

**Me: I don't own PJO. I do own this story - and I really hope that it's starting to pick up! *smiles wide***

**Di: Also, she will be putting Annabeth's dress on her profile, if you want to see! **

**Me: Thanks, Di. **

**Di: No problem, my friend. **

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

I stared down once again at the ring he had given me - it was glorious.

My gown was an original Vera Wang - a lace bodice, and tulle skirt. It reminded me of smoke every time I saw it, descending off the top of the dress and down to the floor. For once in my entire life I was wearing heels, and my feet were absoulutely killing me.

I wouldn't have to dance in these, would I?

Hunter, one of the very few Aphrodite daughters I trusted, messed with my tangled mass of hair a bit more. "Almost got it, Annabeth," she told me, pinning up something else. I hadn't been alowed to see what she was doing to it, as my chair was faced away from the mirror, but it must of been real exquisite, for it to take this long.

"I'm positive you'll love it," she continued, her voice obscured by the amount of bobbi pins hanging from her mouth. Her hands were skilled in pulling up hair and designing things, even though she was completely reproached by the idea of being Aphrodite's daughter.

In fact, she helped me pick out the dress, along with Thalia and Rachel.

That was quite a fun day, now that I think about it. I remember that morning, just like if it was yesterday.

Thalia came storming into my room at seven 'o clock. Wait. Seven? In the _morning_! What was she doing up?

More importantly, why wasn't I already?

"Yes, Miss Grace?" I asked with a yawn, sitting up and pulling my hair into a sloppy ponytail.

Thalia gaped at me. "You're not up. I'm surprised."

I stretched, popping my back. "Me, too. What are you doing here so early?" I stood and walked to my closet, picking out a fresh jean skirt and white shirt.

She seemed amazed. "You didn't forget, now, did ya Annie?" Thalia made a _tsk, tsk, tsk _noise in the back of her throat.

"Forget what?" I questioned, walking into the bathroom and closing the door behind me. I proceeded to change, but Thalia wasn't letting me here the end of whatever she was ranting about.

"_Forget what_?" She mimiked in an annoyed tone.. "Annabeth, you know me, I'm not girly at all, but I'm just doing this for you. You said, and I quote, 'Meet me here, in my apartment, and seven AM sharp. We've got to go pick out the wedding gown'."

I mentally facepalmed. "Oh," I mumbled, coming out of the bathroom, freshened up, with my hair pulled into a better ponytail. "That's today, huh?"

Thalia nodded. "Yeah, sadly. On a Saturday. At seven in the morning." She zoned off for a second, before saying, "I'm gonna go raid your kitchen."

I smiled and followed after her. I had just sat down with my morning cup of coffee when the doorbell rang, and Rachel poked her head in the room. "Hey, Annabeth." She waved.

"Hi, Rachel." I gestured in, and she slid through her little slit in the door, closing it softly.

"Ready to go?" She asked, sitting by me at the island in my kitchen. I nodded as Thalia crunched on her cereal.

After we got through all of this, with Thalia finishing her food, and me getting together all of the money I had to spend, Hunter got there, with a smile on her face. We left right after that, walking down fifth avenue to get to the nearest David's Bridal.

Now, I didn't know too much about being a bride, but I must say, picking out a dress was confusing. A bridal consultant came to us quickly, and we were taken into this little room, with a mirror inside, and a little podium to stand on.

She looked at me, and then shook my hand, "You're the bride, right?" She asked with a happy smile. I nodded slowly. "Good, good! I'm Sarah, and I'm you consultant. So, any ideas for a dress?" Sarah said, sighing happily.

"Yes," I said. "I was doing a bit of research online...And I saw this one certain Vera Wang - "

"What's you're budget, then," she cut in, interupting me.

I smiled softly. "I can go to about two thousand."

Sarah seemed extatic by that news. "Perfect!" She breathed. "Which one was it, again?"

I showed her the picture from the list of documents I brought. She grinned wider. "Ah, yes, that one. I believe we have that one in stock...Just a minute!" She walked out and returned quicker than most, holding a dress hidden by a transparent bag.

Rachel, Thalia, and Hunter all stood up, and left the room for me to change. I slipped into the dress, Sarah pinning it up in the back.

I stared at myself in the mirror once I was dressed. It was unbelieveable - this just had to be the dress.

Sarah smiled approvingly. "You look gorgeous, Annabeth."

"Thanks," I said, stepping down from the podium and walking into the large hallway, where chairs were set about and another podium stood, with a mirror in the front. Thalia nodded approvingly as I stepped unto the podium for them to get a better look.

"I like it," Hunter said, smiling.

"It is nice, Annabeth." Rachel commented. "I can just see you coming down the isle in this."

Thalia didn't say anything, her hand on her chin, studying me up and down intetnly.

"Thals...?" I asked, smiling hopefully.

She smirked. "As long as you don't make me wear a horrid-looking bridesmaid's dress," she said, "then I'm sold, Annabeth."

I sent my gaze to Sarah, who was still smiling in a creepy-overly-excited way.

"This the dress?" She asked hopefully. I could practically see her counting how much money she'd get.

I nodded. "This is the dress...Could you bring a veil, please?" I asked.

Sarah bobbed her head up and down, slipping away for a moment to go and get it. I messed with the fabric, rubbing it between my fingers.

"Do you guys really like it?" I asked, suddenly second guessing myself, realizing that this buying of the dress meant it was all really happening.

"Yes, Annabeth. You look beautiful in it, and Percy's going to love it on the wedding day," Hunter said, Thalia and Rachel nodding right along with it. I smiled. They were right.

Weren't they?

Sarah came back and placed the viel on my head, making the vision complete.

"Annabeth?" Hunter's voice pulled me out of my flashback.

"Yeah?" I asked.

Hunter smiled. "You can look now," she turned my chair around to face the mirror, and I smiled as wide as Olympus.

"Hunter, it's amazing." I said, standing up and hugging her. "I like it." My hair was half down, and half up, with the viel stuck neatly in the top.

"Glad you like it." She said, pulling on her own bridesmaid gown a little.

"You look fine," I said, just as my dad came walking in.

"Looks like my cue," Hunter said, sighing and walking away. Dad walked over to me, and took me arm-in-arm, and actually smiled.

We walked out to the little stretch of beach that the wedding was on, and watched as Thalia, the maid of honor, walked down the isle with the best man, Grover. Rachel and Nico went down together, and then Hunter and my brother, Malcolm.

The ring beaer walked down the isle, followed by the flower girls - Percy's little sister Emily and my cousin's daughter Elaine.

Then "Here Comes the Bride" began to play, and as I stared ahead, walking with my father, I wasn't paying attention to any one thing in particular.

It was like I was in a blissful dream that would never end.

Chiron, who was doing the reading of the vows, smiled as I strolled up. "Who gives this woman?" He asked, his eyes glinting with happiness.

"I do," Dad said, giving me a soft kiss on the cheek and handing me over to Percy, who's eyes were locked on me.

"Very good," Chiron said. "Percy, Annabeth, this is the first marriage in a long time to two demigods - let alone, two with such great powers. I hope Zeus blesses you and your future children both well." He stopped and smiled at me and Percy.

We nodded.

"Demigods, mortals, and friends," he started. "We are gathered here today, on this _very _joyous occasion, to bond these two in holy matrimony. Does anyone object to it?"

At this point, I half expected my mother to stand up and yell "I!" but she didn't. Out of the corner of my eye, I actually saw her smiling.

"Do you have the rings?" Percy nodded, and the ring bearer - I believe his name was Jeremy - walked up and gave one ring to me, and one to Percy.

"Percy, do you take Annabeth Chase, and promise to have and to hold her, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do," Percy said.

"And do you, Annabeth, take Perseus Jackson, and promise to have and to hold him, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do." I said firmly.

"Then by the power invested in me by the council of the gods, I now pronounce you, husband and wife. Percy, you may now kiss your beautiful bride."

Percy leaned in, and I didn't hesitate before crashing my lips against his, and throwing my arms around his neck. We broke apart soon after, and ran back down the isle, everyone throwing rice and blowing bubbles around us.

I smiled the whole way through.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So. As awful this time as before? Still a little too OOC? Or am I getting better? **

**Thanks for the feedback, guys. All of you. :D**


	3. Dancing in a Torn Wedding Gown

**A/N: Okay. Yes, reviewer jordana, I did know that it was illeagal to throw that at a wedding. I was just lost, and, as I said, shot in the dark. :) I mean no disrespect, and I'm not saying this madly. I'm just saying! :D Thanks for your review, and for everyone else's as well! Oh, and I AM a girl. You were right about that! :)**

**Me: *reading reviews* Haha! This has got to be _the _best advice I've ever gotten! Haha!**

**Di: What is it? *tries to peek over shoulder***

**Me: jordana. She's hilarious. And right. Hilariously right. Thanks, reviewer jordana. I'll try my best to do that. *smiles***

**Di:...Yeah. We don't own. **

* * *

><p>We got into the shortened limousine, which would drive us around for a bit before taking us to the reception. I practically yanked the heels off, dropping them at my feet. I leaned into Percy, staring out the window and playing with his tuxedo's pants.<p>

He smiled a very Seaweed Brain-like smile. "Did that really just happen?" He asked me. "Are we seriously married?"

I nodded. We seriously were. Married. "Yeah, Seaweed Brain," I said. "We're seriously mar - "

I stopped mid sentence when I heard something unusual. I thought I might've just been hearing things, until Percy's body tensed as well. Then I absoulutely knew something was wrong.

"Driver?" I called. "Pull over, please." The driver nodded, although he had a very confused look on his face. Percy and I stepped out of the limo. He snapped his fingers, as if working the Mist, and told the driver to go on to the reception.

He nodded, his eyes glazed over, and went on.

I picked up and tried to tuck in the bottom of my Vera Wang.

"What do you think it was?" Percy whispered, already pulling out his lethal ball point pen, Riptide.

"Don't know," I mumbled, taking out my knife. "But it didn't sound go - "

Just then, to my total un-surprise, what to show up thanthe Hydra. I held my knife out, daring the creature to come any closer, when I noticed it wasn't alone. Two dracnae stood by its sides, along with some of my least favorite creatures - the Kindly Ones.

"What to make of this?" I wondered aloud.

"Hello, honey," Alecto said in her raspy voice. "Long time no see."

"Got that right," Percy grumbled in irritation, uncapping Riptide and coming to stand next to me.

And the battle began.

Fighting off the Hydra was almost no biggie - except that a stray fire ball collided with a bit of the dress, tearing it in places. I grumbled quietly to myself, bending down for half a second and cutting most of the bottom half off.

It sure was a heck of a lot easier to fight.

We had it deafeated in no time, me using simple strategy to make it burn its own heads off.

Percy had the two dracnae taken down before I could even lift a finger.

It was the Kindly Ones that worried me the most, though, believe it or not.

Magaera attacked my left, Tisiphone coming in from my right. Percy had his hands full with Alecto by herself. Magaera closed in first, but I managed to hit her exactly where I wanted to with my knife.

Tisiphone had the advantage of mine not paying attention, and she was able to scratch down my back with her talons. I screeched a little in agony, before returning with full force and turning her into golden dust with one swipe.

I wiped the sweat off my brow as Percy came towards me, free of any cuts and bruises. I smiled at him.

"It's a shame I ruined the dress, huh?" I asked.

He chuckled, wiping my cheek where I had apparently gotten cut. "Nah," he said. "It's just a dress."

"My wedding dress." I said, taking the viel from my hair and pulling it into a ponytail after also removing the several hundred pins used to pull up my thick curls.

"A white gown, in which can be bought anywhere." He chided. "Don't worry about it, Annabeth. Vera Wang's not your style anyway."

I laughed and slapped his arm playfully, and started walking in my torn gown, my bare feet hitting every rock in the pavement. It was only then that I noticed Percy's jacket was gone and his tuexdo pants were burned and torn in places, along with his fancy white dress shirt.

"And I thought you looked handsome this morning," I said, smirking.

He rolled his eyes. "You yourself have never looked more beautiful, Mrs. Jackson." He said sarcastically, grinning and gesturing to all of me.

"Nor have you, Mr. Jackson." I said, was we neared the warehouse where the reception was taking place. I stopped abruptly and looked at Percy.

"What?" He asked, smiling at that expression I was using on my face - the devious one I always got when I had a plan.

"Race ya?" I asked.

"Race?" He questioned, chuckling. "Why would you want to race down eighty-second street?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe we'll freak them all out if we run in there looking like this."

Percy thought it over for a second, before saying, "That's a positively great idea, Wise Girl."

"That's why you love me, Seaweed Brain." I remarked, before taking off. Percy started laughing like mad, chasing after me.

We burst through the doors of the warehouse, the whole party going silent. Everyone looked at us with wide eyes, and about a dozen Apollo kids ran over to check on us.

"We're fine!" I laughed. "We just...got into a little bit of a fight on the way."

"Thank God you're all right." Emily said, walking up and hugging us. She has inherited the powers of her mother, with being able to see through the Mist. There was no hiding it from Emily - she was so sweet, I probably couldn't do it anyway.

I hugged her back, her long wavy brown hair pulled into a ponytail similar to mine.

After several people came to check on us - our godly parents included - Grover (who was amazingly the DJ) said it was time for that long awaited father-daughter dance. My dad and I centered ourselves in the middle of the dance floor, as a song I had picked out especially, began to play.

It was one I had found a long time ago - _You Can Let Go Now, Daddy _by Crystal Shawanda. It's quite a sweet song, if I do say so myself. I think I might've even caught my dad tearing up at the end, if it hadn't been for the fact that immediately after upbeat music began to play, and Percy and I had our first couples dance.

I had actually started to imagine that I had dreamed the whole thing - except for the monster part - when the reception was finally over. It just didn't seem real to me.

Is that wrong? To feel as if it wasn't real?

Anyway, after that, Percy and I walked back down the street, not even caring if anyone saw us, and entered into the apartment complex which was now _our _home. I smiled at him as I collapsed on the couch, and sighed happily.

He came and sat down beside me, running his fingers through my tangled and mixed with dried-blood hair.

"Where're we going on the honeymoon?" I finally asked after the longest time of staring at the blank TV screen.

Percy snickered to himself. "It's a surprise."

You see, I made the deal with Percy that if I could pick which house we lived in, he could pick where we went on the honeymoon.

He still hadn't told me, even up to that point, and I was getting annoyed without being able to know - must be the Athena genes - even though I still kind of wanted it to be a surprise.

"You're impossible," I said, laying my head on his shoulder.

Percy smiled. "I know." And then he kissed me again. Long and hard.

That's when I made my desicion. It had been real. All of it.

* * *

><p><strong>So...sappy ending, much? Anyway, I'd like to thank Di again - gah, she always knows what to say! - and reviewer jordana, for giving me some of the best advice I've ever recieved! :D<strong>

**Also, thank you, Suzie! Sweet reviewers, you all are...hehe...**


	4. A Day in the Honeymoon

**A/N: Sooooo...Di seemed to like it. Suzie, princesswhatever9, and reviwer jordana, I hope you all did, too. :)**

**Me: ...Di said I had to stop giving her thanks. I can't do that, so I will now duct tape my mouth shut...*puts duct tape over mouth***

**Choco: *rolls eyes* It's about time. That big mouth of yours was getting on my nerves...**

**Me: *muffled yelling at Choco***

**Choco: *sighs* Anyway, Di went to the ice cream shop. It might be funny when she finds Future like this...QUICK! TAZ! Duct tape her to the chair! **

***a few moments pass by as I am yanked ruffly into a chair and duct taped to it***

**Taz: She doesn't own PJO!**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

Percy actually took me to an amazing place for our honeymoon.

Now, I know what you're thinking. _Let me guess. He took you to the Parthenon in Greece. Or to Paris. Maybe even to the Bahamas. _

Truth is, he didn't take me anywhere like that. Not at all.

I sat down on the dusty couch inside of the cabin, examining the whole place with one eye look. He sat down beside me, and looked with a smile at his and his mom's old place here.

If you haven't already guessed, we went to Montauk for our honeymoon - one full week of nothing but relaxation.

"Let's get started," I sighed, standing up and walking to the kitchen. Percy followed me all the way to the bedroom, where I started removing the comforters in huge heaps. When I got to the sheets, Percy helped me, and we got the bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen done in a matter of minutes. As we finished cleaning and dusting out the cabinets, we decided to take a brake, and headed for the beach.

I laid down on my beach towel and began to read, whereas Percy headed straight for the water. After a few moments, he called, "Annabeth? Are you coming?"

"Maybe later!" I called back, starting to read my book. I only had a few pages left, and it was getting right up to the climatic ending.

Obviously, my answer wasn't enough for Percy. He came walking up through the sand, and sat down next to me.

"Annabeth?" he asked, poking my knee as if that would get me to pay attention. I huffed and sat up, still reading my book. _Who did it? _I wondered in my mind, already trying to piece together the ending of the puzzle.

"Annie." He tried again, laying in my lap. I sighed and rolled my eyes, frowning, and then going back to my novel.

"Wise Girl?" Percy said, messing with the bottom of my book. "Annabeth. Annie. Wise Girl. Smart one. Athena's daughter. Mrs. Jackson?"

I caught the tale end of the last one, just barely, and looked down at him, rising my book over my head. "What?" I snapped, glaring. He smirked at me, and that's when I realized there was a ball of water in his hands.

He flung it at me, hitting me in the face before I could even react.

"Seaweed Brain!" I yelled. "Why'd you do that? !"

Percy was already up and running, "Because I knew you'd get mad!" He hollered, running down our private stretch of beach. I smiled and was up in a flash, chasing and laughing behind him.

Of course I caught him, leaping on his back, causing us to tumble into the sand. We landed beside each other, panting silently and laughing, still trying to catch our breaths and let our reddish-tint faces turn back to their normal color.

When we finally were calm again, he grabbed my hand, and intertwined our fingers. We stared up at the clouds, watching the sun set over the horizon, as if sinking below the ocean.

"What an end to a beautiful day," I commented, sitting up and pointing out to the sun. "It's glorious, right, Percy?"

Percy nodded. "It is, Annabeth," he said, in the same mannor as he did when he proposed.

I smirked. "Are you just agreeing with me to be agreeing?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Maybe. Is that what you would like me to do, Mrs. Jackson?"

"If you wish, Mr. Jackson. I am always right, after all." Suddenly, I had an idea. "Come with me," I said, standing up and running inside. He followed behind me swiftly. But, of course, like any other stratgist, I refuse to expose my plans.

* * *

><p><strong>...So. <strong>

**Sorry that it's a bit smaller than most. But, it should be longer next chapter. I promise! :D**

**What'd you think? Fluffily enough? Have I got plenty of Percabeth intertwined? I hope so! **

**~Future**


	5. Of Pregnancy and Cookies

**A/N: Okay, so, they ARE back from the honeymoon, now. It's been about seven weeks since the wedding. Hope you like! **

**~Future**

**Me: *struggles for hours to get out of duct tape* *sighs, and falls asleep after forever and half goes by***

**Di: *walks in* *sees Future tied to chair* *sighs* Well. I leave for one simple task, and I come back to this. *points* Anyway, she doesn't own PJO. **

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

"No," I said. "The building plans are for here and here only. No, I can't just move in a matter of three days! We've already got the - yes, yes, I understand that. But, sir, I - yes, yes sir. Thank you, sir." I jammed the phone off angrily, growling deeply to myself.

I'd - no - _we'd _been working on this project for the past three months, me and my company, coming so close to actually starting the real building after several changes and directions given by Mr. Wately.

Of course, this man just has to be someone who is so explicitly uncapable of decisions that I'm now stuck with having to move the entire project a block down from where we originially started. It's going to cost enough to have to fix the damage repairs alreayd caused by this, not to mention I have to replace all of the funds and tools already used with my own money and -

My brain was so clouded, it was almost impossible to think straight. I had been sick for the past twelve days - non-stop throwing up, and horrible mood swings. I was starting to wonder if maybe I was just PMSing, when I realized that couldn't possibly be true. When was the last time it happened? I can't even remember.

_You don't think? _I asked myself. _I mean, surely not...it's only been...but - _I'm startled when my phone rings, and I picked it up instantly.

"Hello?" I asked into it.

"Hey, Annabeth," a voice answered. It was Katie Garderner-Stoll. I smiled.

"Hey, Katie." I said. "What's up?" I leaned back into my chair, knowing only good news could come from this daughter of Demeter.

"Annabeth, I was wondering if you could do a bit of a favor for Travis and me." She said.

"Of course, Katie. What is it?"

"Is there any possible way you could watch Ellie this afternoon? I know that it's sudden, but something came up with Travis at work and I've got to go into my own job as soon as three hits."

I laughed into the reciever. "Absoulutely!" I said excitedly. "I haven't seen Ellie since she was a newborn!"

Katie laughed. "Thanks so much, Annabeth! You don't know how much it means to me..."

"No problem, Katie. Anything for a good friend - do you need me to come pick her up now?"

"Could you?" She asked in a small voice.

"Sure. I'll be there soon. Do you mind if I run by the store first?"

"Nah," she said. "I don't care. Thanks again, Annabeth."

"You're welcome, Katie. See you in a minute,"

"You too. Bye." She said.

"Bye," I said, clicking the off button and gathering up my things. I walked out of the builiding, informing my brother and fellow co-worker Malcolm where I was going. He informed me he could handle this by himself, then mentioned that I looked a little wierd.

I just shrugged when he said that, walked outside, and got in my car.

Stopping at the convience store, I walked in and started roaming the isles, not sure what to pick. I had full intent to spoil Ellie to the point that her mother _and _father would kill me, but I still wasn't sure exactly what to get. _Chocolate. _Ellie loved chocolate. I could get her some of those, and then some Nerds, along with some gum (because Katie asoulutely refused to give her any).

As I headed to that isle, I past down the one of generic medications, followed by things like thermometers, prenatal vitamins, and...pregnancy tests.

I found myself stopping suddenly to peer at them, every fiber of my being begging me to buy one. But there was no way I would need one, would it? There was absoulutely no way that I was pregnant...right?

Against all of my sane will, I reached out and grabbed a box of First Response pregnancy tests. I looked over the box, as if I was actually thinking about putting them back, when in all honesty I had all intentions of buying them. It wouldn't look _too _weird, would it? I mean, I was twenty-three, a perfectly normal age to be married and having children.

I stuck the box up underneath my arm and went on buying candy and treats for Ellie. I walked up to the cashier, a young woman about the age of twenty-two, who actually smiled as she scanned all of the items. "A kid on the way?" She asked. I shrugged, not sure what to say.

She giggled a little bit under her breath. "Don't be embarrassed. It's absoulutely fine...and babysitting a young one?" She guessed, pointing at the candy. I nodded, and said "Yes ma'am."

"You're lucky to be able to have one," she said. I was about to ask what exactly she meant by that, when she told me the price for all of it. I paid it, and walked back outside, getting slowly into my car.

_...What have I just done? _I asked myself. I ended up driving rather slowly to Katie's house, but took a deep breath and ran up the steps to meet the little two and a half year old at the door, her jacket wrapped tightly around her, and her little boots on her feet.

"An-ah-bef babysit?" She asked. I nodded.

"Yeah, Ellie. I'm gonna babysit you. Ready to go?"

She smiled a toothy grin. "W'es, w'es!" Ellie reached her arms up, so I picked her up and swung her around on my hip. Katie came walking out, dressed for her job as - surprisingly - a pediatrician.

"Once again, sorry, Annabeth." Katie said, giving me a slight hug. "But, hey, duty calls."

"It's not a problem, Katie," I reassured her again. "I absoulutely _love _Ellie. I've not seen you in forever." I said, touching her nose. She giggled, and wrapped her arms around my neck. I smiled, and walked down their brick steps.

Katie put Ellie's carseat in the back of my grey Honda civic, and then gave Ellie a kiss as I strapped her in. "Love you, Ellie." Katie said.

"'ove you too, Mommy." Ellie said back, giving her a sloppy kiss on the cheek. Katie smiled and closed her door. She went to her car as I sat down in mine and drove off to my house.

"Are you excited, Ellie?" I asked, looking into the review mirror to meet her light brown eyes. She nodded firecely.

"I v'wery e's'cited, An-ah-bef." Ellie said, messing with her toy bunny's ears. She smiled at me. "I's a lotta fun wi' you and Percwee."

I couldn't help but laugh at that as I turned into our driveway and parked, letting Ellie out. She took off like a rocket into the house, and had I not had to close her door, I would've forgotten about those items in the paper bag. I sighed, picking the bag up and walking inside. Percy's car was already here; which actually made a lot of sense, since it was three forty, and school ends at three. He was now a very successful Biology teacher in Goode High School.

He met me in the garage, carrying Ellie.

"Babysitting gig?" He asked. I nodded and pecked his lips before sliding by him quietly, and walking (more like dashing) to the nearest bathroom I could find. I shut the door tightly behind me, and locked it.

Percy must not've either wondered or wanted to argue with me, because he didn't even approach the bathroom, and instead I could've swore I heard the sound of NickJr's _BubbleGuppies _playing on the flat screen in the living room.

I took the box from the bag, and read the instructions. Basically, to keep from boring you, I had to pee on the end of this stick. How hard could that be? Anyway, long story short, I peed on two of the sticks, and set my phone timer on for five minutes.

They were the longest five minutes of my life. In the first two seconds, I set the tests down inside of the sink, and leaned over it, watching them intently. By the tenth second, my ADHD taking over, I had to go walk over to the bathtub in the rather tiny bathroom. I sighed and sat on the edge of it, listening as the clocked ticked by restlessly. _Tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock..._I couldn't stand it.

I started to pace about, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.

I could hardly concentrate, and was reduced to playing with a strand of my hair and a penny before I finally heard it go, _ding, ding, ding, ding, di - _I went over to my phone, clicked the button, and looked inside at the sink.

Two pink lines. Positive, on both of them.

So, it was true. I was pregnant.

Everything seemed to slow down for a moment. Time appeared to stand still, as I thought to myself. _I'm pregnant. I'm pregnant! _The thought made me smile at first, until the fear set in. _But what will Percy say? He's always wanted kids, right? I mean, I shouldn't be freaking out about this - he'll love it! ...Won't he? _

I gulped, time returning to normal, everything back to normal speed. "Might as well tell him," I said, to mainly myself, smiling and walking out of the bathroom, one of the tests in my hand. I kept it concealed, though, for a moment, slipping it into my back pocket as I saw Percy and Ellie sitting at the kitchen table. Percy was playing with her and her toy bunny, laughing along with her, his eyes happy and twinkling with imagination and amazement at the little girl sitting before him.

Ellie laughed at Percy as he pretended that the bunny was a super hero, saving the day by vanquishing the evil Dr. Pepper and Lady Salt, thus freeing the trapped damsel, Princess Paprika. She nibbled on her cookie happily, watching as the bunny swooshed up into the air, Percy making a _shwoo _noise to go with it.

Crossing my arms, I laughed at the sight of it, catching both of their attentions. Percy's cheeks went bright red. "S-sorry," he stuttered. "But she just really wanted to play 'Super Bunny Saves the Universe'." he smiled at me goofily, and I grinned back.

"Children are great, aren't they?" I commented, leaning against the door frame. He smiled.

"Yeah. Especially Flower right here." He ruffled Ellie's light hair, causing her to giggle even more than she already was.

I saw the cookies sitting on the plate next to Ellie. I decided to walk over there, and get one. I reached over Ellie, carefuly not to hit her head, when I felt something be removed from my back pocket. I swerved around to see Percy holding the test, questioning eyes drifting from it to me, and then me to it.

"Uh, Annabeth," he started. "Are you...?"

I nodded, my smile never leaving my face. He seemed to think it over a complete half second before scooping me into a hug, and twirling me around. I was surprised, but I still laughed to it, which made Ellie clap in excitment, yelling, "An-ah-bef and Percwee dance! An-ah-bef and Percwee dance!"

Percy kissed me, which earned a shrieking "Eeew!" from Ellie. Percy placed my feet back on the ground and I looked at her.

"What wrong, Ellie?" I asked, smiling as I picked her up and into my arms. "Can 'Percwee' and I not kiss?"

"Nah-uh!" Ellie protested with a huge, tooth-filled grin.

"But your Mommy and Daddy kiss all the time." I pointed out, poking her nose again.

Ellie looked astounded. "How does An-ah-bef know wha' Mommy and Daddy do? Has An-ah-bef been spy-in'?"

I kept laughing as Percy wrapped us both in a hug. He kissed my cheek. "This'll be the best nine months ever, right?" He whispered in my ear.

I nodded. It would be - wouldn't it?

* * *

><p><strong>Mwhaha! What'd you think?~?~? THANK YOU, Mrs. Percy Potter!~!~! My heart swelled with your reviews!~!~! Yes, as you can see, reviewer mimi d, they will be having kids - I swear. :D<strong>

**Hope you enjoyed! I liked writing this one a lot...:D**


	6. Baby's Day Part One

**A/N: Okay...THANKS, THANKS, THANKS!~!~!~! Yes, Di, a hint of Tratie in there, but I just really wanted a little thing to happen - and it just sorta completed the chapter, ya know? :) Suzie, gah, you're too sweet! Thanks to those few who favorited and alreted this story! All of you rock! **

**So, anyway, to get to the point I was trying to make, I've skipped a couple of months - we're now to the fifth month of the pregnancy, at eighteen weeks. Now...I don't know if any of you have made guesses, and I'm still undecided about how to leave this chapter...Cliffy? Or not...hmm...*devious smile***

**K: Hold still, hold still! *rips duct tape off mouth***

**Me: Ow! I mean...thanks. But OW! **

**K: *smiles* She doesn't own PJO. (And yes, Di, you did go to Baskin Robin's...yuuumm...)**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

Five months.

I was throwing up for the first half of that, constantly. I can't even tell you how much work I managed to slip by and miss. I mean, I told Percy I could go, that the company needed me, but, apparently, the son of Poseidon is very hard-headed.

He wouldn't let me, and even had to have Thalia come in and watch me while he went to work. I was shokced by it.

Earlier that morning, Percy and I had been fighting over just that very subject.

"It's not going to kill me to go to work, Perseus," I said, crossing my arms and glaring. He rolled his eyes in an annoying way and grabbed his car keys.

"No, Annabeth." He said, walking past me to get something else. "The doctor's all said you needed bed rest."

"So!" I protested. "Since when have _I _listened to doctors?"

"Since now," he sighed, pecking me on the lips. "Now, I've got to go - " there was a knock on the door. Percy smiled suspiciously, walking to it, while I was still glaring hard, my arms still crossed.

Percy opened it, and Thalia walked in, her arms crossed also. She looked at him irritably. "Why'd you wake me up at six forty in the morning? I was _trying _to sleep," she growled, collapsing on our couch.

Percy smiled. "I need you to watch Annabeth," he said simply, smirking to the point in which was almost unbareable. "She's been put on strict bed rest for the rest of the pregnancy."

Thalia glanced at me. "So, what?" She asked, looking back to Percy. "I'm now the babysitter?"

Percy opened his mouth to say something, but I broke in, "I don't need a babysitter!" I shrieked. "I can take care of myself just as well without one!"

He shrugged. "I can't trust you."

"I can be trusted," I mumbled, as he walked over, kissed my cheek, then left.

I groaned, falling down on the couch next to my best friend.

"So..."I started, looking around. "What now?"

Thalia shrugged, then cusioned herself on the couch. "Wake me up later..." she started snoring softly, so I stood up, went back to the bedroom, and sat down on the bed, watching what little TV I could stand.

Discovery channel was playing a quite interesting thing on great white sharks, so I just left it on that channel. I wasn't truely paying attention though, and only caught small glimpses at what was really happening.

Hmm...seven AM. What to do, what to do?

I got off of the bed and walked to the kitchen, my stomach grumbling for something to eat. I rubbed it without even thinking about it, feeling the baby kick. I smiled as I took down a bowl and made some Cherrios, then sat down at the table, eating gingerly.

It was seven fifteen by the time I finished, and I sighed, putting my bowl in the sink. There was nothing to do around here all day.

_I could read. _I thought. _Maybe play a little self-on-self chess? Solitaire? Call around? Maybe Katie would let you babysit again. Maybe wake Thalia up and see if she wants to go and do something? We need new baby furniture, anyway..._

I went with my last thought, and walked over to Thalia, shaking her shoulder gently. I knew how she was when she was woken up from a nap - vicious. She snapped up instantly, first reaching to her bracelt for Aegis, then stoping when she realized it was me.

"What, Annabeth?" Thalia asked groggily, laying back down. I shook her shoulder again.

"I'm bored," I stated simply. "I want to go furniture shopping - and paint. We need paint for the baby's room."

"You haven't even found out the gender yet," she murmured, sinking back into the clutches of Morpheus.

"So?" I commented. "We'll pick yellow - yellow's a neutral color." I started to drag her off the couch, but she stopped me and went ahead and got up. I just couldn't help it, though - I was about to go insane from not being able to do _anything. _

Anyway, the doctor said bed rest. That didn't mean I couldn't go shopping. That just meant I couldn't go to work.

"Speaking of gender," Thalia said, yawning, "when do you go and find out, anyway?"

"The - " I started, but realized that I didn't know either. I'd forgotten. "I don't remember," I said honestly, walking into the bedroom and slipping my shoes on. I was already dressed in the other ways, except that my hair was down.

I didn't feel much like pulling it up that morning.

I grabbed my car keys, but Thalia snatched them away. I must've looked surprised, because she chuckled, "I'm the babysitter, which means I get to drive." She said.

I rolled my eyes, trying as hard as I could to surpress my smile as I walked out to the car, and sat in the passenger seat. I hadn't been in this side of my Honda for a long time (since I was so used to driving it), and I realized it was a whole different perspective than what I'm used to. Thalia put the keys in the ignition and started the car, backing out and into the driveway.

"Well, okay, babysitter. Where we heading?" I asked, looking out the window as we traveld into a part of Manhattan _I _had never even seen.

Thalia smiled. "Believe or not, this Babysitter knows how to pull a few strings - I had a friend of mine make some good quality stuff."

"When'd that happen?" I wondered, almost snorting. She shrugged.

"Just trust me, Annie. I promise you'll love it." She pulled into a store I had never seen before, where someone was standing, who suspiciously reminded me of a Hepheastus boy.

"Hey, Thalia!" The boy greeted happily. "I was startin' to wonder when you'd come and get these pieces!" He gestured inside, then turned to me as I stepped out of the car and onto the sidewalk. "And you must be Annabeth."

Taking my hands, he led me inside the tiny warehouse, where I gasped in amazement.

Everything was there. A homemade desk, rocking chair, changing table and crib. A tiny nightstand, and a bookshelf. I couldn't believe it. I walked slowly and sliently, running my finger across the flawless wood. "How'd you do this?" I murmured, mostly to myself.

The boy, who's name I learned was Thomas, smiled at me, wiping his hands on some little towel thing. "Just a little work from an Hephaestus son - yours truly. See, I run a shop downtown. People come to me when they need something handmade. But when Thalia came in there and challenged me with this, well, I just knew I had to make it perfect for the savours of Olympus."

Thalia grinned. "I told ya to trust me, didn't I?"

I nodded, a smile upon my lips, as I sat down in the rocking chair. It went back and forth, not slowly, but not too fast, at just a perfect angle. It didn't make the slightest noise as it went back, and it fit just perfectly, even when I was five months pregnant. I leaned back in it, resting my head against the back. "Aw, Zeus..." I muttered. "This is wonderfully...relaxing..." I felt close to falling asleep, so much to the point that I closed my eyes, when Thalia walked over and shook my shoulder as I had shook hers earlier.

"Oh, c'mon, Annie. You can't get sleep _that _easily," Thalia told me. I glowered up at her, but got on up.

"Thomas," I said, looking at him, "this is all wonderful! How much will it all - "

Thomas shook his head. "I won't hear of it, Annabeth. It's free. Just...say it was a gift. An early baby shower present."

I rolled my eyes. "No, because I won't hear the end of this. I'm paying you. How much?"

"Free."

"What's the price, Thomas?"

"Absoulutely not a cent owned, Annabeth."

"Tell me what the price is, Thomas," I glared.

He didn't seem a bit phased by it. "No, no, no. There's no price on all of this, Annabeth, I promise."

I sighed. "Respect your elders, Thomas."

He shrugged. "You're no older than me."

"When's your birthday?"

"December twenty-sixth. When's yours?"

I smirked in victory. "_November _fourteenth, to be exact. I'm older. Now, what does it cost to buy all of this from you?" I paused. "Or to at least repay you for all of this work done." I gestured to all of it, using both of my arms.

Thomas put his hand on his chin, and I saw his bkue eyes calculating something. He started drawing in the air with his finger, constantly shaking his head and murmuring something. Eventually, he looked me head on and said, "One..._cent._"

I groaned. "You are _in-possible _Thomas!"

He smiled. "I know. My penny, please ma'am?"

I gave him a wry look, taking out my wallet and digging in it. He closed his eyes, and left his hand wide open. I smirked and layed a one hundred dollar bill in his hand. Then I walked off, got in the car, sat down, and locked the doors. I rolled the window down, watching as Thomas stared unbelievingly between the money and me.

"And that's not even half of what you're getting!" I called.

He rolled his eyes, said something to Thalia, who came walking out. She handed me the keys to the Honda.

I looked at her. "What are these for?"

"So you can drive yourself home," she stated simply. "I'm going to help Thomas load all of this into the delievery truck. We'll be at your house in a bit."

I smiled at her, grabbing her arm before she could walk off. "Thanks, Thals," I said, giving her a hug. At first, she went rigid, then slowly wrapped her arms around me.

Well, as best as she could, considering I wasn't the skinniest human being or demigod to walk the planet.

I walked over to the driver's side of the car, got in, cranked it and turned around. I went home smiling. This was possibly one of the best days of my life.

* * *

><p><strong>So, I decided I wanted you all to guess - what gender is the baby! I would ask for names, but I've already got some picked out! Of course, if you do have a suggestion, go ahead and let me hear it!<strong>

**I can change plans! Thanks again, to all who review! :D**


	7. Baby's Day Part Two

**A/N: Okay, ya'll. **

**These names just struck me as being awesome, but, also, I like the ones I've esentially picked out. What do ya'll think of them?**

**For Boys:**

**Audrick Percival / Andrick Percival (Thanks to dmeltdown for these!)**

**Carter Sunny (For reasons...)**

**Leonard (Leo) Alexander**

**For Girls:**

**Hayley Moonlight (Once again, I've my reasons...)**

**Chelsea Althea (dmeltdown, thanks again!)**

**Alexandria Meline**

**Okay, so, help for some of these came from a good friend of mine - *cough* Mrs. Percy Potter *cough* - showed me this website in which holds Greek names. and I found these most interesting. (Of course, Carter and Hayley came from my OWN twisted mind...haha...)**

**So, to end this long A/N, I don't own PJO. **

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

My phone started ringing just as I pulled into the garage. I dug through my purse to locate it, then clicked the 'yes' button on 'accept call?'. "Hello?" I asked into the reciever, stepping out and walking into the house.

"Annabeth?" Percy's voice answered. It sounded like a mizture between excitement and worry.

"What's wrong?" I questioned, opening the fridge and taking out some leftover lasagna. "Another demigod-student? One who can see through this Mist? Oh, no, did Cold Case get canceled?" I rambled off the list of things I knew he would most liekly be worried about. I put the lasagna in the fridge as he continued.

"What? No...I mean, at least I hope not..." he trailed off, causing me to sigh.

"Percy, sweetie, weren't you asking me something?" I started, taking the lasanga from the microwave, and setting it on the counter so I could eat.

He seemed to come back to reality. "Oh, yeah. I was wondering - you did know the ultra-sound appointment's today, right?"

I almost spit out my food. "Oh...that's today, huh?"

"Yeah," he said, souding like he was arranging some papers on his desk. "Friday, June sixteenth, three forty five PM." Percy informed me. I nodded, looking at my watch - 1:42 PM. Roughly two hours until that time.

What to do until then?

"Why are you on the phone?" I suddenly wondered. "Lunch br - "

"Brake," he finished for me, giving a laugh. "Anyway, it's nearing the end of lunch. That means I need to get ready for sixth period. My..._roudiest _class of the day," he said, sighing. Now, I laughed.

"Okay, okay. I'll let you get to that. Love you."

"Love you, Annabeth. See you in a while." Percy hung up the phone, leaving me to eat my lasanga in peace.

I ate it gingerly, suddenly realizing I forgot to pick up the paint. _Well, I'll just leave that for later. _I thought, sitting down on the couch. I proped my feet up on the coffee table, and clicked the TV on. I went to the DVR, and started watching a show I had recorded - the latest episode of that new TV show _Falling Skies. _It seemed simple enough when I first found it, looking for something with high action and produced by Spielburg.

Well, I got it both, and now I'm seriously addicted to it. Not that I didn't also enjoy Noah Wyle's outstanding performances as Dr. John Carter in _ER. _

Sorry, ranting again. I can't help it.

I watched as Pope was showing Matt how he was planning to kill the Mechs - which are giant, robotic things - when I heard the doorbell ring then a slight pouding on the door itself.

I sighed slightly, pausing the show and walking to the door. The pouding continued. "I'm coming!" I hollered, opening the door to find Thalia there, with Thomas right behind her like an obediant dog. I smiled, walking outside with them.

As I started to grab the rocking chair from the back of the moving van, Thomas tapped me on the shoulder. "What?" I questioned.

He shook his head. "Nah-uh. Thalia told me that you were on strict bed rest, Annabeth. We can handle this." Thomas put his hands on the rocking chair. I kept my hands firmly placed on it as well, shaking my head vigorously.

"I just can't go to work," I explained in a "trying-not-to-get-angry-but-pretty-close-to-it" voice. I tugged the chair a little bit my way. "But, I am completely capable of handling a little ol' rocking chair." I started to move it again, but Thomas yanked it his way.

"If I let you and Percy finds out, I won't hear the end of it, Annabeth. Just let me take this." He started to take it, but I yanked it my way.

"Do we need to go through this again, Tommy?" I asked, moving the chair whether he liked it or not.

He sighed. "At least let me help!"

"No!" I said, quite loudly, I might add. I could tell I hurt Thomas' feelings. I sighed. "Look, Thomas, I promise, I'll stop trying to take any furniture and be a good little wifey who does what she's told, if you just let me carry in the rocking chair. I just want to carry in the rocking chair - I mean, it is my favorite piece, after all."

He grinned at me, and nodded. "Just don't let Thalia see you." He whispered. I winked, laughing slightly, as I hauled the chair down the ramp, and into the house. Instead of putting it in one of the several spare rooms, I sat it down square in the living room, a little bit of ways in front of the TV. I snatched up the remote, sat down, and pretended I was watching the show.

Thomas smiled approvingly when he saw me, but Thalia rolled her eyes. She knew what insane stunt I was about to pull.

As soon as they were out of sight, carrying the crib I believe, I stood and ran outside, grabbing the nightstand. I walked it inside, putting it by the doorway, and had already moved the changing table there as well, managing to ssit back down in the chair and start watching my show by the time Thomas and her got done moving it.

I smiled triumphantly to myself as Thomas scratched his head wonderingly, before continuing to take it all back there.

This continued for about half an hour. When they were finished, Thomas gave me a small hug and wishes of good luck. I waved as he left, Thalia crashing on my new rocking chair. I sat on the couch, longing for it.

Thalia started to rock back and forth, sighing happily. "Oh, Annabeth..." she murmured. "This is...this is, wow...I need me one of these..." She looked up at me. "No wonder you didn't want to leave it."

I laughed, watching my show. It ended too soon as well, leaving me to dwell on the questions I still had before the season finale Sunday night. I stood and walked about, wondering what to do next.

I couldn't very well decorate the nursery yet - not until we knew the gender - which wounldn't be until that evening. _I could always go and rearrange the play room. _Something inside me thought. I shook my head, starting to pace in the kitchen. _No, no, not a good idea. We still haven't gotten all of the toys yet, and the baby shower's not for a couple more months...Is there anything I can do to mine and Percy's room? Have we installed the basonet yet? I wonder if it's still on the bathroom shelf - _

"Annabeth, geez, calm down." Thalia said, piercing into my thoughts. I must've been saying them out loud, because she had a rather annoyed glance on her face. I smiled,

"Sorry. Just ranting." I mumbled, looking around the house. _Clean. _The word sat on my brain like a motherly instinct. _Clean. This house has to be _spotless. I started running around, cleaning everything I could get my hands on - and it just didn't feel like me.

I wasn't a huge cleaner, but I did enjoy keeping the house orderly. But with this? It was like something was just taking over my body, and I wasn't able to stop until I heard the door open, and Percy saying, "Annabeth? I'm home!" That meant it was just past three.

I walked into the kitchen, where Percy was standing. "Hey," I said, kissing him. "How was work?"

"Good," he managed, looking me up and down. "Okay, even _I _know there's no way you've been at home all day."

I looked off into space. "Oh, yeah, well...Babysitter and I had this crazy idea, so we went shopping, and bought - well, sorta bought - a whole collection of handmade baby furniture." I smiled, as did Thalia, who came and stood beside me.

Percy smiled and rolled his eyes annoyingly. "Fine, fine. Ready to go?" He looked up at me. I nodded swiftly, already walking into the garage, and getting into Percy's black SUV. He came out behind me, with Thalia waving from the doorway.

"I'm going to raid your kitchen again!" She called out as we were pulling away. I smiled and waved back, as she shut the door.

"So," Percy started. "How well did 'Babysitter' do today?"

"Good," I said, looking out of the window. "I've been thinking about names, Percy. We still have to name it, you know. And I just can't think of one that fits..."

He smiled. "I know what you mean, Wise Girl. I've been thinking, too. If it's a girl...I just don't know what names I like. Hayley's a cute one, for a girl. Carter for a boy. But just any others? I'm lost with them."

"Tell me about it, Seaweed Brain," I sighed, watching as the grass and trees blended together. "I hate not knowing, you know?"

He grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers. "But we'll know soon, right?"

I nodded excitedly as he kissed my knuckles.

We arrived at the doctor's office twenty or so minutes before the appointment. We sat in the waiting room, talking to ourselves, waiting to get called back. At exactly three forty-five, much to my surprise, we were called back.

I would've swore Percy was sweating.

"You okay?" I asked, as we followed a nurse through twisted halls and past several rooms.

He nodded, gulping. "Just fine." Percy rubbed his hands together, and wiped them on his jeans.

I laughed as the nurse led us into a smaller room with a little machine in one corner and a examination table right next to it. I took his hand in mine. "You're not nervous, are you, Percy?"

His cheeks went a little red, but he shook his head, causing me to laugh a little more.

"Alright, Mrs. Jackson. Just sit down on the examination table and an OB nurse will be here momentarily." The nurse said, smiling half-heartedly. I nodded, and she left. I sat on the table, scooting up a little and leaning back on the part which was lifted a little higher than the rest. Percy sat beside me in a chair, looking more nervous than ever as he gripped my hand. I couldn't help but smile as I practically saw the wheels turning in his head.

The nurse walked in, smiling, and sat down on a little spinning stool.

"Hello Mrs. Jackson, Mr. Jackson." She read a clip board which she had in her hand. "Here to find out the gender of the baby?"

We both nodded.

"Okay, good, then. Mrs. Jackson, if you could please pull up your shirt." I did as told, thus letting my stomach show. The nurse, I believe her name was Sandra, took out some container with a nosel on it. "This may be a little cold," she said, and put the goop on my stomach.

I'd heard it be called many things. But to me it just looked like goop. Aloe gel, that's what it reminded me of.

Sandra took out a white-wand looking thing, turned on the computer, and typed away with one hand while the other was used to make the thing move around my stomach, searching for the baby's heartbeat.

A minute went by, with no noise at all. I was starting to get a little frightened, and was about to say something, when I heard a strong, _tha-dump, tha-dump _sound. Sandra, now back to smiling, seemed almost relieved. I exhaled in relief. The nurse started mumbling things, like, "Amniotic fluid looks good, just right for this stage...length wise, perfect...cranium a bit bigger than most, but nothing to worry about...long legs...even arms..."

I honestly didn't know if this stuff was pointed towards us, until she turned to look at us.

"This," she said, smiling. "Is your sweet little girl." I gazed up at the screen, seeing what appeared to be blobs at first, but slowly turning into the form of a moving, thriving baby.

I squeezed Percy's hand, turning towards him. He was crying, little tear streams going down his cheeks. I felt tiny tears prick at the bottom of my eyes, and even let a couple out, but I knew I had to stay strong.

She finished quickly, assuring us that everything was perfectly fine, and that the reason we hadn't heard the heartbeat sooner was because of her position. Sandra left, and I pulled my shirt back down, looking at Percy.

"It's a girl," I said, sitting up.

Percy nodded, smiling wistfully, as if off in a different world. I smiled and stood, walking to the door. Percy was still in his chair, staring off into space.

I laughed. "Percy," I called, walking out the door. "Come on, Seaweed Brain, or I'm leaving you behind!"

His head suddenly snapped my way, and he stood, practically running to catch up with me.

Grinning, we signed out and left the office. Now, I know I should've been thinking about things like names, and how exciting this all would be, but honestly, truthfully, the only thing on my mind right then was _paint. _

* * *

><p><strong>So. It's a girl. I'm so sorry, dmeltdown! You must hate me now, for not making it a boy, but I promise, one will come in good time, and you can all take the names and vote then. :)<strong>

**Thanks to you all, for everything you do! **


	8. What's 'Her' Name?

**A/N: dmeltdown, once again, I am just so sorry. But don't think that your names went to waste. I promise, you'll be happy with how it turns out - it just may take a few chapters to get there. Thanks again to all of those that helped! (Especially the ones who helped me with the names! You know who you are...) Also, guys, sorry if it's bad today. I - I don't know. I wasn't really feeling all into it, but I promise, it'll be better! :D**

**Me: *rubs cheeks where the duct tape was* When I get my hands on that cousin of mine...**

**K: What'll you do? Yell at her? CAN I HELP?~! *bounces up and down***

**Me: Shhh...*places hand on top of head, making her stop and look around dazed* I don't own PJO.**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

_Paint. _

That was the one word I kept using constantly. _Paint. _

"Annabeth, we don't need to go get paint today, it's too late." He pointed out.

"But we need paint for the baby's room!" I argued.

"And the painting can wait. Annabeth, it's not like she's due tomorrow." Percy pulled into our driveway. I huffed.

"So? If we get it done early, then I can go ahead and decorate the room, and make it look nice."

He laughed. "She's not an interior designer, Annabeth. I honestly don't think she even cares at the moment."

I rolled my eyes, getting out of the car. "I care," I muttered, walking into the house. We sat down at the kitchen's island, thinking to ourselves quietly. Then, Percy got that smirk on his face.

"Are we going to call her 'she' forever?" He questioned, smiling.

I actually hadn't thought of that. "Well, no." I said plaintively, trying to think of some names. "Of course we'll give her a name."

"I like Evangilina." Percy said.

I shook my head. "No, not for this one. It just doesn't have a ring to it...hmm...Catherine?"

"Too formal." He said. I rolled my eyes.

"What name do _you _have, then, Seaweed Brain?"

He grinned. "Jessica. Jessica Jackson - it's sort of rhyme-y." I made a face at the name. It's not that it wasn't a pretty one, it's just that it didn't feel right. There was some name I was thinking of...it started with an 'H'. What was it?

"No...Elizabeth. Hermone. Hali. Hillary, Nattalie?"

"Lexi? Madeline? Nicole."

"Uh-uh. Nicole reminds me of that snobby girl we knew in high school. Her name was Nicole, right? Anyway..."

"Esmerald."

"Kyra."

"Fern, Faith, Georgia?"

"Abby, Althea, Ma - "

"THALIA!" Thalia suddenly shouted from the couch. We both turned around to look at her.

"What?" We asked.

She shrugged, taking a swig of her coke. "Thalia. Name the kid Thalia; it's short, sweet, simple and to. The. Point."

"I think not, Thals." Percy said, twiddling his thumbs together.

"Why not?" Thalia questioned, glancing at Percy. He shrugged.

"I don't know. I just don't think it's a very good idea."

"So?" They started arguing over it. I bit my lip. This reminded me a lot of what happened right before the wedding, when they were arguing over which person went first - something so easily simple that they had to make it hard. That thought got me thinking about the night he proposed - how we watched the baby turtles, following the moonlight to the ocean. And then Hayley's comet -

"Hayley," I murmured.

That got their attention. "What?" Percy asked.

"Hayley." I said. "Her name should be Hayley - Hayley Moonlight." Percy and Thalia's expressions were very confused, so I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Percy, remember the night you proposed? We saw Hayley's comet, and watched the turtles by the moonlight. Plus, Thalia, that's almost like naming her after you, because Artemis is the goddess of the moon. Make sense?"

They nodded robotically, meaning they half understood. I groaned, standing up. I decided to go to bed then, even though it was only about five thirty. I didn't sleep very well that night, because my mind couldn't slow down my thinking.

_What will she be like? _Was the first thought. _Will she be smart, like Mom? Will she have my eyes? Percy's? I wonder what color her hair is. Blonde? Black? A wierd mixture, maybe? She's tall, we know that - I've got to stop referring to her as 'she'. Sh - Hayley has a name now. Hayley Jackson. It even sounds nice. Hayley Moonlight Jackson. MJ. Moon...that'd be a nice nickname. MJ, for short. _

I let out a sigh, turning over in the dark room. I glanced at the clock - eight ten. This was going to be a long night. Then, a sudden realization hit me; _What would she be? A demigod? A quarter blood? Will she be dyslexic? Does she have ADHD? What powers will she inherit? Will she be able to control water? Wouldn't that be something to see at the Christmas parties, a seven month old, balancing a ball of water in the air. Stranger things _have _happened, though. _

I looked back to the clock - eight eleven.

This night would be too long indeed.

* * *

><p><strong>So...Sucky, much? Anyway, next chapter, you guessed it, PAINT! Annabeth will finally get her wish and get the paint. :D Now, if you didn't like it, as stated at the top, I'm sorry. I needed to get the point across and it just wasn't working well with me today. Better next time, I promise! <strong>

**~Future**


	9. Paint

***-A/N: GAWH! Reviewer Jennifer, you're one of the best! Also...I started school today. You'd think it'd be bad, right? WRONG! Thank you Jesus, I actually had a lot of fun, and enjoyed it a lot. **

**Choco:...What is up with Apollo and the rhymes?**

**Me: Well, he's the god of poetry. **

**Choco: So? I've read some of the haikus, and they aren't that good. **

**Me: Shh! You'll insult him! Anyway, I don't own PJO. **

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

Even though Percy tried to get out of it in every way possible, even to the point of saying he had to go fix an air conditioner, I convinced him to take me paint shoping. He groaned when he finally realized he couldn't win, and went out and hoped in my Honda.

I'd also finally convinced him to let me drive again, and I was taking every advantage of that, because if I've learned one thing about Percy, he second guesses a lot. We pulled into the Home Depot, parking in a space near the entrance.

I got out, followed by Percy, and walked in, immediately finding my way to the paint. I looked at each color individually, watching each one as if examining each color of the rainbow.

A light yellow? Might be too bright. Teal? No, not enough blue or green in it.

"I was thinking, Perce," I said distractedly, looking at a row of colors, "that we could paint her name in a color exactly polar opposite to whatever we chose. Wouldn't that be nice?" I looked at him.

He shrugged. "I guess."

I smiled. "Good. Which color, then?" I showed him the pallets. "Ivory or eggshell?"

"Does it matter?" Percy asked. I gaped at him.

"Of course it matters! Ivory has a more wedding-touchy feel and yellowish tint to it. But eggshell is closer to white."

"Then why not just pick white?"

"Because white itself is not exactly white. Duh," I said, rolling my eyes. He looked as confused as ever, but I didn't say anything to acknowledge it. Finally, I put the little strip of color back into its placement. "Eh, we'll deal with that later - we still need a true background color." I started looking around, thinking about Moonlight. What would look good as moonlight?

I kept scanning the colors, and felt like giving up after nearly forty minutes, when it caught my eye - a certain color, very deep and dark, yet beautiful in nature.

"Percy," I said, pulling him down to where I was bent, looking at the colors. "What do you think of this one?" I pointed to it, and he cracked a smile.

"Midnight Blue?" He questioned. I nodded. "Why?"

"Because," I stated, smiling and picking up the pallet preview. "Her middle name is Moonlight. I want her room to have something to do with her name. If we do a midnight blue, and then take Ivory, because it'll give it a better look, and paint the moon and stars, with her initials in the middle, then it'll be perfect - and we could decorate the whole room in stars and things to do with night. Can't you just imagine it, Percy?" As I was doing all of this, I gathered together the color pallets we were getting and walked up to the desk.

The woman was in her early forties easily, with salt and peppered hair. She smiled, helping me with getting the paint ready. When she was finished, we thanked her, paid the money owed, and then went back home.

Let the fun begin.

* * *

><p>We stepped on the white, plastic covering that litered the floor. We had just finished moving all of the furniture back out of the room (with little to no of Thalia's help), and were getting ready to paint.<p>

I had also carried in a radio, so we could listen to music why we painted.

I turned up the volume to max, which wasn't very high on the old thing, and then stuck my paint brush deep into the pail. I started painting carefully, taking in each line, and how this and that would need to look to be perfect, while Percy painted in odd circles and criss-crossed lines.

"What are you doing?" I finally questioned, filling in a small part I'd missed near the door frame.

He shrugged. "Painting."

I laughed. "Like what? A _kindergartner_? Even _Ellie _could paint better than that."

"Don't bring Ellie into this," he said, smirking and continuing to paint like he was outlining a contenintal drift.

"Why not? She _is _our goddaughter, after all."

"Besides the point," Percy said indignitly. "Now, shh. I'm trying to paint!" He made a wide circle, not even considering to fill in the middle. I rolled my eyes.

"You are _such _a Seaweed Brain," I muttered, smiling and finishing up around the door frame.

"The one and only, Wise Girl," he said, poiting his paint brush at me. I felt something wet hit my cheek. I turned around a looked at him, his face guilt covered, with his shoulders pre-shrugged and a stupid grin on his face.

"Whoops?" He questioned. I smirked.

"Oh, so that's how it's going to be." I said, and flung some paint at him. It hit his old T-shirt square in the middle, now splattered with blue paint. Percy gaped at me.

"Annabeth, I'm appalled." He said, "But, take that!" And flung some paint, ruining my shirt. He closed his eyes and started laughing hysterically. That's when I made my move.

"You forget who's Athena's daughter, son of Poseidon," I cackled, and ran up behind him before he could see, painting the back of his head in midnight blue. I started laughing myself, before I felt something wet smeared on the side of my face with a hand. I opened my eyes and gaped at him.

"You forget who's Poseidon's son, daughter of Athena." He teased. I couldn't help but laughing some more, enjoying this more now that we had had some fun. Suddenly, a nice song came from the radio, _I Hope You Dance _by Lee Ann Womack. Percy stepped back, still holding his paint brush, and offered me his hand.

"Might I have this dance, Mrs. Jackson?"

I smiled. "It'd be my honor, Mr. Jackson." We took hands, dancing almost like we had when we danced at our wedding, except this featured twists and turns in which we would paint the walls while dancing. It made me feel like we were sixteen again, laughing away while dancing and painting at the same time.

When the song ended, even though I could tell he didn't want to, we let go of each others hands and went back to painting. We got through at about eight PM, and I was tuckered out.

I knew I'd have no problems getting to sleep tonight.

I put the finishing touches on the 'H M J' initials, curving them just right. I had been correct about the Ivory - it really just made it shine. All of her walls were painted the magnificent blue, and on the first wall coming in, where there was the most empty space, was covered in dotted stars, a cresent-shapped moon shinning down from one corner, and her initials in the center. At the bottom, since I managed to find some leftover green paint from where I painted my office a while back, and some grey from painting my study, I painted a tiny wolf on the bottom, howling up at the moon.

I stepped back and admired my work. Sure, Percy helped, but I was inclined to think I did it all at this moment.

Percy wrapped his arms around my back. "It looks great, Annie."

I smiled. "I know." Looking down, I placed one hand on my stomach, and he did the same. "Do you like it, Moon?" I whispered. There was a slight kick. It was then I couldn't stop my smile, even as we cleaned up and headed to bed.

And to think, this all started because I wanted _paint. _

* * *

><p><strong>So. Too fluffily? Just enough? Have I worked enough Percabeth in there? SCHOOL IN THE MORNING! YAY! :D :D :D :D Thank you, Jesus! <strong>

**~Future**


	10. Hayley's Birth Part One

**A/N: GAH! I'm skipping months again...She's now nine months pregnant. You can only _imagine _what comes next, can't you? Hehe...:) Also, something unexpected will happen down through her, and I hope it's a shocker! :D **

**Me: So...who's you're favorite?**

**K: My favorite of what?**

**Me: Anything that you wa - **

**K: BANANAS!...She doesn't own PJO. **

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

I lowered myself to the couch, it becoming increasingly harder now that I was nine months along. Hayley was due any day now - in fact, she was supposed to be born yesterday. She missed her own birthday! Amazing, she's already got Percy's timing.

I pulled my legs up underneath me, and started reading my book. Percy, once again, was at work. Sadly, Artemis had called Thalia back two weeks ago, so I no longer had a babysitter. Sure, Malcolm and even Thomas came by occasionally, but mainly I was on my own.

And I'd done pretty good at staying in the house all day. I mean, I had to completely decorate Hayley's room, and then I had to make the playroom look good, and I've been cleaning non-stop. It was one way to pass the time.

But, now, I finally had a moment to relax, and I was going to take it. I started back to my reading, a fave I've had forever - _Gone With the Wind, _an original copy, too, signed by the author. Don't ask how I got it; that's a whole story in its self.

I smiled as she kicked for the umpteenth time that day. "What's the matter, Moon?" I questioned, resting my hand on my stomach. "You okay?" There was another rough kick in response, but I didn't think too much of it. I mean, hey, it's not like she's going to come in the next ten minutes, right? I continued my distracted reading, not even realizing the time.

As I sank deeper into the world of Tara and Scarlett O'Hara, something just wasn't sitting right with me. Something was off, I could just feel it.

_Maybe I'm just hungry, _I thought. _That's it. _

I stood and walked to the kitchen, my book still in my hand. I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to eat - maybe some of that stuff I've been eating lately? What was it? Something to do with taco shells and strawberry pudding. Hmm...no. I didn't want that. Pizza, maybe? I think we have some in the fridge. I opened it and it examined its contents.

Nothing. Not a thing that was going to stiffle whatever this was suddenly coming over me. Maybe I was having another bout of morning sickness? Sure, I'd gotten over it months ago, but that doesn't mean it couldn't happen again. At least, I don't think it does. Right? Right?

"I'm probably just tired," my mind was trying to come up with anything except what I was really thinking this was the onset of. I mean, it couldn't be, could it? I did feel a little hot, but I knew it was cooler in here than in most places. Were my feet and hands swollen?

I looked down at my feet. They were swollen, terribly, which I had first just dismissed as part of the pregnancy, but then realized it could be something _far _worse, something I'd read about in all the books, but never thought would happen to me.

Then again, I don't guess most people would expect it to happen to them, either. What was my blood pressure? I wasn't sure, but I was surely starting to feel a lot more hot.

"I just need to lay down," I mumbled. "I'll be better tomorrow. Surely I will." I sat down on the couch, laying out. I tried closing my eyes, but that wasn't helping. It only made me feel worse.

And worse.

And worse.

I felt like throwing up. Was this really happening? If not, then wake up, Annabeth! Wake up _now! _I was just contemplating with myself which it was, when I heard the door crack open.

"Annabeth?" the voice was quiet, belonging to Thomas.

"You in here, sis?" Malcolm's voice followed. I couldn't answer. I couldn't do anything. I was eventually able to make a low groan. My eyes were squeezed shut tightly, but I managed to open them so I could see the worried looking faces of my half-brother and Thomas.

"Annabeth?" Malcolm said. "Are you okay?"

I started to nod, but my head was starting to ache. I gulped, and shook my head as best I could.

Thomas put his hand to my forehead. "Dear Zeus, Annabeth. You're burning up."

I nodded. "Malcolm, I need you to take me to the hospital. Please. Thomas, call Percy, would you? Ask him to meet me there, please." I started to sit up slowly, needing both of their helps to get up off the couch. I walked, trying my best to look strong for my brother, but had to stop short and gasp as I made it to the island. I grasped the side of it hard, my water breaking. I released it when it was over, and walked the rest of the way to the car.

I got in the side of Malcolm's, not even planning on driving. Malcolm got in the driver's seat, and only later would I realize the reason that Thomas hoped in the backseat, a phone to his ear.

"No - no, Percy, she's fine right now...We think that it might be...Look, she just told me to tell you to meet us there...Whichever hospital's closer, cause that's the one we'll be going to, Percy. Okay...okay, fine. See you there. Bye," Thomas finished his conversation, and then leaned back into the leather seating, sighing and running a hand through his hair.

"Coming?" I managed, my voice small-and-totally-not-me-like.

Thomas nodded. "Yeah, he's coming. He might be there before we are, with how jumpy he sounded."

"I doubt it," Malcolm said, suddenly speeding off down the highway. He was going to get us a ticket, I just knew it, not to mention I was now in labor in my brother's silver Chevrolet camero. We were at the hospital faster than I even thought was possible. Maybe he asked Mom for help? Maybe not.

Everything seemed to be put on fast-forward, like on a boring movie. It flashed from me and Malcolm walking in together, while Thomas ran inside. Before I even knew it, I was being wheeled down some long, narrowing hallways with a fast-paced woman pushing me. Next, I was in a hosptial bed, doctors of all kinds running tests on me. Time and volume and voices began to run together.

It was so confusing. I just wanted it to stop; to end, and then go back home, and get ready for whatever was supposed to happen on a normal day. But not this. I didn't want this to happen.

My last thought and vision right before I blacked out was Percy - _where was Percy? _

* * *

><p><strong>So. Cliffy, anyone? Now, I know you all must be wondering what exactly that it is wrong with her, but just wait 'til next chapter. It'll be shown then - just know that it happens to most pregnant women, sometimes, and can come rather rapidly, and after 37 weeks of pregnancy. So, I figured it just fit, and I wanted to give a little umph to the story! Hope you enjoyed, and look for the next chapter hopefully soon! <strong>

**~Future**


	11. Hayley's Birth Part Two

**A/N: So, so, so. What'd you think? You like? Hope so! I have a little surprise in the beginning - a POV we've not seen for quite a few chapters! :D **

**Me: Bananas?**

**K: That's what she said. *looks cookie over and over* H - I mean, Future, look! This cookie is an evil GENIOUS! **

**Me: *facepalm* Oh, not this again...I don't own PJO.**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Percy's POV (AN:Weren't expecting that, were ya?) _**

I was freaked out the moment my phone rang. It was supposed to be off in the classroom, but since it was a day after Hayley's due date, I made sure to keep it on. Just in case.

My student, Todd, was up front giving a nice biology speech, when it rang. "Hold on a second, Todd." I said. He was in my advanced class, GRC as we called it at that school.

"Of course, Mr. Jackson," Todd said with a smirk. I rolled my eyes, and opened my phone. Thomas? What we he be doing, calling at this hour - oh, wait. God, no. Please, no.

"Hello?" I asked into the reciever. Thomas rambled off something. "She's _what?_" I practically screamed. "What do you mean, how can she be okay?" I asked. He said something. "Do you think it's pre - "

"We think that it might be," he interrupted. "Just come on to the hospital."

"Which one?" I questioned, already gathering some things together in a hurry.

"Mr. Jackson?" A girl, Dana, asked. I held my finger up in a teacherly 'hold on a second' gesture. She looked kind of worried for me.

"Whichever hospital's closer," he told me fastly. He finished what he was saying, and I started getting more jumpy by the second. Closing my phone after saying a quick 'bye', I turned to my students.

"Class dismissed," I said. "If anyone asks anything, tell them Mr. Jackson gave the permission. But I've got to go."

"Can I be in charge?" Todd asked with a mischievious smile. I shook my head.

"No. Dana, you're in charge. And Jason, please keep and eye on Todd. I don't want your best friend to become expelled." And with that, I dashed out of the classroom, running by the office quickly to tell what was happening.

I got in my car, and started driving hurriedly. But probably not as hurridely as Malcolm. He was very protective when it came to Annabeth. He was just that way. By the time I got there, I saw Malcolm's car out there, parked in a wierd way right by the opening of the hospital. I parked right behind him, and then started running in there. I ran up to the sign in station, and looked at the nurse wildly.

"Annabeth Jackson," I said zealously. The nurse looked over something, and nodded to herself.

"Room three zero two," she said in a bored tone. I had already took off running before she could holler behind me, "But visitors aren't permitted at the time!"

Too late, I thought, dashing this way and that, eventually finding my way to the room. Malcolm was pacing nervously outside of the room, and Thomas just stood there, biting his nails.

"Is she...?" I asked.

Malcolm just shrugged. "They don't know. They think it might be preeclampsia, but they won't know until the tests come back, which could take over three hours. It's going to kill me, not knowing." He started back to his pacing, but I wasn't planning to just stand outside all day. I opened the door, and walked in, to find Annabeth passed out in the hospital bed.

I wanted to frown, but I could only smile at the sight. She still had those princess curls, even though they framed her extremely reddend face. I walked over and sat next to her, holding her hand. Even it was burning up, and a little bit swollen from the looks of it.

Another nurse stood by an IV bag, feeding something in to it. "This should help her," she said simply. I nodded, and she left, Malcolm and Thomas joining me in the room.

I sighed in relief as her eyes fluttered, starting to wake up.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

I opened my eyes weakly, to find my favorite Seaweed Brain sitting there next to me. I smiled half-heartedly.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey," he replied. "Good to see that you're awake." I yawned, and stretched, feeling a little less hot, but still hot enough to cause a mild heat stroke, maybe. I could really use some ice.

"How long've I been out?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.

Percy looked over to Malcolm, who just shrugged. "An hour, maybe two? It's been a while, Annabeth. They've given you some meds to postpone the birth as much as possible, until they're sure of what to do."

I nodded. "Oh...I was hoping it was just all a horrible dream." I leaned back into my pillows. "Guess not."

The door opened with a slight creak, and my OB, Dr. Tiffany Samuels, entered. She smiled at me. "Hey, Annabeth. Not your ideal form of birth, is it?"

I shook my head. "No, ma'am."

Her smile turned into a sad one. "Well, I'm afraid it's about to get worse. Annabeth, all of you're tests have come back positive for preeclampsia. We could try for the natural, but all of us feel it would be safer with a c-section. What do you think?"

I swallowed, my fear coming true. I was praying that it wasn't this; hoping so, so much that it wasn't.

I looked at her. "Which has the higher percentage for less damage on her?"

"Caesarean," she told me. I gulped again, but nodded.

"I want to do that." I said, gripping Percy's hand tighter than I ever had. "When can we?"

"Now, if you're ready," Dr. Samuels sat on the edge of the bed. I glanced to Percy, who looked like he was holding back tears just as much as I was.

"You ready?" I asked, picking up our hands which now seemed infused with the others together. He nodded.

"I'm ready." I looked to Dr. Samuels.

"We're ready." I said.

"Good," she replied. "I'll have the prep team come in here. You want your half-brother and..." she looked at her chart. "...cousin, to go as well."

"If they want." I said, my gaze turning to Malcolm. He nodded solemnly. Thomas was already eagerly nodding, even before I asked. "Yes, ma'am," I continued distractedly, trying to get my mind off the fact that it was happening now. All of it, about to happen in a course of three-to-ten-minutes flat. Dr. Samuels stood from her perch and walked out of the room.

A moment later, nurses came back in, with blue scrubs for the boys, and a hair one for me. I put it on my head, Percy's, Malcolm's, and Thomas' all matching. I would've laughed, had it not been these circumstances. They rolled my bed out of the hospital room, Percy still beside me, his hand still clamped on mine. The boys were following close behind. They wheeled me into a OR, and then helped me unto a bed which would be the operating table.

As they were getting the epidural ready, I turned to Percy. "P-Percy?" I mumbled. He looked at me. "I-I'm scared," I said. Yes, that's right. I, Annabeth Chase-Jackson, was scared out of my wits. I didn't know what was going to happen - and I hated that. If there's one thing Athena's children hate more than spiders, it's not knowing.

This had to be the scariest thing I'd ever done - scarier than the Labyrinth, or those times I was sure I was going to die. I was more scared now than I had ever been. I let two tears escape my eyes, before I had to hold Percy's shoulders as they inserted the epidural's needle into my back. It hurt, but I managed.

"I know," he whispered, kissing my forehead as they had me lay down on the now very cold table, and putting a drape so that I couldn't see what was happening up there as they worked. Percy wasn't allowed to, either, but I was sure he wouldn't leave my side anyway. We were going through this together, no matter what. "But we'll make it through, right?" He asked, smirking that smirk that would make me smile and nearly laugh, no matter how mad or sad I was at him.

"Yeah," I said, holding on to his hand for almost dear life. "We'll make it through, together. Just like we always do."

"Annabeth," Dr. Samuels voice rang out, "can you feel this?" I felt a slight numbing sensation, but nothing more.

I shook my head. "No, ma'am."

"Good. You'll feel some ruff tugs and pushes, but nothing else, okay?"

"Okay," I basically whispered, feeling as that tingling numb sensation made a line across my abdomen. I did feel some slight tugs and pulls, and I gripped Percy's hand hard at each one.

And, suddenly, I felt a finally tug, and a screaming baby pierced the air. It was like music to my ears. She was here. She was apparently healthy. They cut something, and then lifted her slightly over the drape.

"Here she is," Dr. Samuels said happily, before handing her off to some of the nurses, who barely did anything but suck some fluid and things out of her nose, and clean her off.

As they were stitching me up, they brought Hayley over to us. Percy craddled her in his arms, holding her up a little so I could see. She was beautiful - blonde tufts of hair, and spectacular sea green eyes. She looked just like Percy when he was little, except he didn't have the blonde hair. She had my nose, cheek bones, and freckles, though, so I couldn't complain too much.

"Hey, sweetheart," I said, reaching up and touching her out-stretched hand. I carressed her soft cheek. "I'm your Mommy."

Percy looked at her. "And I'm your Daddy."

I know this may sound insane, but she smiled when she said that. I would swear on the Styx that she did. She smiled, grinned, whatever you want to call it. But she _did it. _

"You look so much like your Daddy," I mumbled, playing with her blonde tufts.

"She looks like you, too," Percy pointed out. "Because, I know I don't have this beautiful nose," he poked Hayley's nose softly with the tip of his finger, like we used to do for Ellie. "Or, these gorgeous freckles and rosy red cheeks. That all your Mommy, Moon."

They finished not moments later, and allowed Percy to continue holding Hayley as I was rolled back to my room for rest. I hadn't realized it yet, but I was already feeling better - much better than I had in the past month or so.

I wanted to go to sleep so bad, but before they'd let me, we had to complete the birth certificate. I wrote my signature on there, Percy wrote his, and together we wrote _Hayley Moonlight Jackson _across the name thing. I watched in awe as they put her foot print on it, and her fingers. She was twenty-two inches long, pretty tale for her age, and five pounds, four ounces. She was beautifully pink, and always warm when I held her. Later on that night, they made us let them take Hayley to the nursery, but I almost didn't mind.

I was bushed out. I wanted nothing more than to take a long, comforting nap.

So, I did. Percy left, though, wanting to go see her as much as he could before coming back and getting some sleep himself.

Malcolm congratualted me, giving a hug before he left, saying that he would contact Thalia and the others, including Chiron, by tomorrow morning. "You need to get plenty of rest," he added. "Because you know that a crowd will be here in the morning."

I smiled. "I know. Thanks, Malcolm. For everything. I'm sure Hayley wouldn't be alive at this point if it weren't for you." He shrugged.

"I did what I had to, Annabeth. You are my favorite sister, after all." With that, he waved, and left. Thomas gave me a small hug and said a quick 'good luck' before leaving.

I closed my eyes and smiled, thinking happy thoughts to myself. Tonight might not've been the best night of my life to start out with, but it sure did end that way. I fell asleep, dreaming about taking home my sweet, precious little girl.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Percy's POV<em>**

I had my face pressed up against the nursery glass. She was breathtaking, and I never wanted to leave her side for a minute. I knew eventually I'd have to, but as of right now, it was all perfect. I didn't feel the slightest bit rushed, and I felt like she was all mine.

My daughter. For my taking. I knew the first time I saw her eyes that I would be wrapped around her finger in no time. I just knew it.

"Mr. Jackson," a nurse questioned, walking up to me. She had red hair, almost auburn, and blue eyes.

"Yes?" I asked.

"I'm afraid you'll have to leave now. The nursery is closing for bed. But, don't worry, she'll be here for you tomorrow." I nodded my thanks, and left. I thought about Hayley all night that night. I couldn't stop myself, even as I feel asleep in a chair beside Annabeth.

She was my only thought.

* * *

><p><strong>So. Happy Percabeth ending! Hehe! Not that it's the end, of course. There are still many more chapters to go, I promise. <strong>

**Hope you enjoyed! **

**~Future**


	12. Hayley's TOO Loved?

**A/N: So. I guess I just love that word. 'So'. It's like my official ending and greeting, since I tend to use it every chapter. Haha...Glad you liked it! So far, nothing but happiness from my reviews / reviewers! Thanks SO MUCH guys! You rock!**

**Me: So...bananas...Why do you like them so much? **

**K: Because it's the color of my ADD bookbag! *shoves neon yellow bookbag in my face***

**Me: *pushes it away* Thank you for sharing. I don't own PJO or any brand names that might be possibly mentioned in this story.**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

_The creature stood, glowering before me. _

_"What do you want?" I nearly hollered, feeling a cool breeze swim by. _

_"I want you to know what I do," it snarled. "That attack on your wedding was no mere coincidence, daughter of Athena. I was sure you would have figured it out by now. But I should've known - you weren't smart enough." Its lips curled into a vicious smirk. "It was as if the worst could happen when that son of the sea god was born, Athena's child. We all figured he would be stopped; but, then again, we all knew there was no possible way this prophecy could be true unless he survived. When he married you, we knew it was only a matter of time..."_

_"Until _what_?" I cried in exasperation. _

_"That child was born. It was bad enough we had a new Big Three child to worry about. But now we have his precious granddaughter in our grasps." It hissed. _

_"What do you want with Hayley? !" I screamed. "She's innocent, of whatever you think she did!" _

_"It's not what we think, darling Annabeth," the voice took on a tone that was both menacing and mezmerizing, and in a patronizing whisper continued, "It's what we know." _

_"Well, what do you know?" I questioned, taking a daring step forward. _

_"We know a lot," it chirped. "Practically everything. But we're not like your mother, we don't have strategic plans which elaborate across an entire dimension. But that child will not be whom you think she is. She has a destiny that cannot be stopped, Jackson. And you know it." _

_I shook my head, unbelieving. "She'll never turn into what you think she will. No matter what." _

_"You just watch, my darling. She very much will. Hayley Jackson is not who she seems." I lunged to attack at the creature, but the vision/dream started swirling in a fushion of color that seemed like the magical dust sparkles that you would see in those fary movies. _

_Light broke into the dream, completely oblitherating it, my dream gone. _

* * *

><p>Malcolm was the one shaking my arm slightly. I blinked my eyes a few times, realizing my surroundings. I was still in the hospital room, except now I was surrounded by old friends and people from camp, along with my parents and Percy's.<p>

"An-ah-bef!" Ellie shrieked, running from her mother's arms and hoping into mine. I smiled and hugged her.

"Hey, Ellie. How are you?"

"I d'ood, An-ah-bef. Where's Hey-wee?"

I laughed. "I don't know. Maybe Percy will bring her in soon."

"I wanna see her. Mommy says she's purr-dy."

"She is very pretty, Ellie. And I can't wait for you to meet her."

"I can't wait to meet her ee'fer." Ellie said, climbing back off the bed and into Katie's arms. She smiled at me.

"How're you feeling, Annabeth?" She asked, bouncing Ellie on her knee.

I shrugged. "Can't complain, I don't guess."

"Good," she said. Sally and Paul nodded in agreement, and my dad looked relieved. I pushed myself up on my elbows so I could sit up better, hearing the door open as I did so.

Percy eased himself through the door, carrying something wrapped in a pink blanket. He smiled when he saw that I was awake. I smiled back as he walked over to me and handed Hayley to me.

She looked more like Percy than I'd realized. The way her eyes sparkled in the light. It was like when I saw Percy in the water, or whenever we were together, happy. Hayley smiled at me, and grabbed my finger with her tiny hand. I played with her fingers, causing her to giggle uncontrolably.

Everyone in the room laughed.

"I wanna see, I wanna see!" Ellie shouted, scrambling back up into the bed on all fours. She cocked her head sideways and Hayley did the same. I tried to stiffle my laugh as they copied each other, turning their heads this way and that.

Ellie raised her index finger slowly and touched Hayley's cheek. Hayley did the same.

"I've made my de-sis-she-on." she said, poking Hayley's cheek again. "I like her!"

We laughed again. "That's all that matters, isn't it?" Travis asked his daughter. Ellie nodded.

"It was my de-sis-she-on, Daddy, and I picked d'is one. I like Hey-wee."

"Okay, I want to see my goddaughter," Thalia said, walking striaght over to me and picking Hayley up. She looked her over for a few minutes, then started rocking her back and forth. I saw Hayley yawn and close her eyes. She was snoring softly before any of us could even react. Thalia smiled a victorious smile. "It's official - she's Percy's."

"You had doubts?" I asked, almost offended.

She shrugged. "I had _suspicions. _There's a fine difference. But this laziness right here," she pointed at Hayley, "_proves _beyond doubt that she's Kelp Head's daughter."

"Shut up, Pinecone Face," Percy mumbled. Thalia shot him a glare.

"I heard that."

"You were supposed to," he retorted, smirking and sitting on the edge of my bed.

"Can I...?" Sally began. I nodded.

"Of course. She is your granddaughter after all." I said. Sally smiled as she craddled Hayley, then looked at Percy.

"I am now old," she said. Percy laughed.

"You'll never be old - even though you're now a grandma."

Emily peeked up over Sally's shoulder. "Can I hold her, Mom?" She asked.

"In a minute, sweetie," Sally said, and I could tell by that look in her eyes she loved holding Hayley. A minute went by. Emily taped her mother again. "Hmm?" Sally asked, still starring down at Hayley.

"Can I hold her _now_?" She asked, much sarcasm and know-it-all in her voice.

Sally rolled her eyes. "Fine, Emilia Danielle Blofis. Here," she passed Hayley carefully into Emily's thirteen-year-old arms. Emily smiled.

"She's so pretty, Percy." Emily said, then snapped toward me and said, "And she looks a lot like you, Annabeth."

"Thanks, Emmie," Percy said, calling Emily by her special nickname he'd picked out just for her.

"Thank you, Emily." I said. I watched as they passed her around, one-by-one. Katie looked at her with much interest, as if she missed it when Ellie was that small. She probably did. Travis held her just as nervously as he first had with Ellie, like he was afraid he'd drop her.

My dad took her, and I saw tiny tears spring in his eyes. "Just like you," he murmured, referring to me. He placed a kiss on Hayley's forehead, passing her to Malcolm. Malcolm smiled as he played with her hair.

"Let's hope she's a smart blonde, like you, Annabeth. I don't know what I'll do if she inherited Percy's brains."

Percy frowned while the rest of us chuckled. "When did this become pick-on-Percy-day?" He asked.

"The moment you walked in the door." Travis said, grinning stupidly. Katie hit his arm, although she had a smile playing across her lips.

"Be nice, Travis," Katie said.

"Be nice, Daddy," Ellie copied.

Malcolm laughed, handing Hayley to Thomas, who had accompainied him. The moment she got in his arms, her eyes sprang open. She looked him up and down, and all over for a few seconds. And then...

She screamed. Hayley started crying so loud that Ellie had to cover her ears.

Thomas' face got red as he handed her back to me. I rocked her in my arms for a few seconds, but she continued bawling. "Shh...it's okay, Moon. Everything's all right," I said. She still didn't stop. I handed her to Percy, who tried himself, but the truth was, I was lost. I didn't know what to do, for once in my life.

When Percy's attempt failed, Thalia rolled her electric blue eyes, and took her away.

"Hey, Hayley." She said in a soothing tone. "I bet your tired, aren't you?" In response, Hayley closed her mouth and looked at Thalia quizzically. "Yeah, you are, aren't you, Hayley?" Hayley yawned, blinking her eyes tiredly. "I knew you were. Why not take a little nap, huh? A small one? Just for a minute?" Thalia rocked her gently, like a swaying breeze might rock her. Hayley closed her eyes, and in no time was asleep.

We all gaped at her.

"How on Olympus did you _do that?_" I asked, amazed as Thalia handed her back to me. She shrugged.

"I dunno. Maybe she just likes me." Thalia said, sitting down in one of the many chairs located in the room.

"Or maybe you're the 'Baby Whisperer'." Travis said.

"There's a whole lot of them out there," Katie continued, Ellie sitting in her lap. "Ellie's was Annabeth. When Ellie was really small, the only thing that could quiet her down was Annabeth singing - gosh, what was that song, Annabeth? Hmm, hmm, hm?" She guessed in a hum.

I thought about it for a second, re-looking through those past memories. "I think it was 'You Are My Sunshine'."

Katie smiled. "That's it. Annabeth would sing it to her, and that's the only way she'd get to sleep. We spent many-a-night holding the phone next to Ellie's ear before she would finally go to sleep."

I laughed, remembering that.

We all sat there, akwardly for a few seconds, before Katie stood up and moved Ellie robotically to her hip. "Well, we need to get going. Ellie's got pre-school in half an hour."

"I'm gonna do g'weat, won't I, An-ah-bef?" Ellie asked. I nodded.

"You will. Now, come here," she ran up and I hugged her, as did Percy, before she and her parents left.

Sally took a deep breath and sighed. "Okay, well, we need to be getting home. Emily's got school. Bye, you two." She stood up, hugged Percy and me, and then kissed Hayley on the forehead. Paul gave a wave, and Emily walked to us. She gave Percy a hug, then me, and then kissed Hayley as well.

"Bye, Hayley." She whispered, then left behind her parents, saying, "Mom, do I _really _have to go to school today?"

I almost snorted, but stayed quiet as I rocked Hayley gently. Her eyelids fluttered, meaning that she was dreaming. I smiled - what could my newborn daughter be dreaming about? This crazy world she was born in to? Or perhaps her godly grandparents?

Oh, God. I forgot about them - would they be coming to see her? I had absoulutely no idea.

Everyone else started leaving right after them, Thalia being second to last. Thomas was the only one left when she was gone.

"I'm sorry about making her cry," he apologized.

I shook my head. "Don't be sorry, Thomas. It could've happened to any of us - you were just the arms she landed in first." I smiled, hopefully convincingly.

He smiled back. "I'm still sorry, Annabeth." he let out a breath I hadn't even realized he was holding. "But, I've got to go. Thanks for letting me come, Annabeth, Percy." Thomas nodded at each of us, then left.

The room became suddenly silent - nothing but the tiny beeps of machines and the soft breathing of Hayley.

I looked at Percy. He looked at me.

Then he kissed me. On the lips, when we thought we were all alone. And then, a little 'gah' sound brought us back to reality, as we looked down to find Hayley's wide sea green eyes looking at us.

I don't know why, but we both blushed as if it was Sally catching us kissing in Percy's room so long ago.

Hayley started laughing as if she thought this was quite comical. We were still blushing like mad, but couldn't help and laugh along with her. She was so beautiful - and she giggled just like I used to when I was little.

And to think, we hadn't even gotten her _home _yet.

* * *

><p><strong>So. So, so, so. <strong>

**I now realize that that disclaimer for brand names was not useful for this chapter - but I WILL be using brand names, so I might as well start now. It's 11:57 PM. I have school in the morning, and I am watching Iron Man 2. **

**Oh, what fun I shall have. :D**

**Hope you enjoyed! **

**~Future**


	13. Screaming Equals Johnny Cash

**A/N: Hello! I missed Percy's birthday, and Percabeth's Aniversary, but that's okay! Anywhoot...I know I sorta messed up the song 'Rock-A-Bye Baby' down here, but I think the ending sounds a little violent...don't you think? **

**Anyway...**

**Me: Okay, just me today. First, I'd like to thank the LOVELY The Greek Goddess Athena for inspiring me with the music! I loved her idea so much, so I asked if I could borrow it. She told me yes, so thanks just so much! *smiles wide* Anyway, ****I don't own PJO, any potential songs mentioned in this story, or Johnny Cash! **

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

Not sooner had we got Hayley in the car and started off for home than she had began wailing.

The cry was piercing, like I guess most baby cries were.

"It's okay, Hayley," I said, rocking her pumpkin seat gently. I swear that almost made it worse. Percy continued driving, and I could tell it was practically killing him to not be able to turn around and unbuckle Hayley so he could rock her the proper way.

He looked at me with the rear-view mirror, his eyes begging. I shook my head and sent a death glare his way. He just kept on driving as I tried to sooth Hayley's cries. Surely it'd be better when we got home, right?

_-One Week Later-_

Wrong.

"Wwwwwaaaaahhhhhh!" Hayley screamed from the nursery. Percy and I looked at each other, forgetting whose turn it was this time.

"I'll get her," I finally stated, sitting up in bed and walking out of the room. I couldn't remember the last wink of sleep I'd gotten. I don't think Percy could, either. I walked into Hayley's room, glancing at the wall we had painted a few months earlier. I managed a smile before her cries broke into my thoughts.

"Waaaah!" she wailed, her arms flailing and legs kicking in the air. Her face was as red as a tomatoe, as it had been since we brought her home. When was the last time _she _even slept?

"It's okay, Moon," I whispered, picking her up and rocking her in my arms. Her scream quieted for a minute, but then was back up right again. "What do you want, hmm?" I asked. "We just fed you an hour ago. And I know your diaper isn't full. What's the matter, huh?"

I sat in my rocking chair, the one I was still madly in love with, and rocked back and forth. She stoped screaming, but her face was still contorted and redish, little tears still leaking down her cheeks.

I sighed. "If only Thalia was here...I don't think you've slept since she left..." I tried to remember what Travis and Katie had told me about Baby Whisperers. Maybe I could sing like I used to do to Ellie?

"What song ya wanna hear, sweetie?" I asked, rocking slowly as she sniffled. I wiped her nose with the sleeve of my long-sleeved shirt. "Hmm..._Rock-a-bye baby, in the tree tops. When the wind blows, the craddle will rock. When the bow breaks, the craddle will fall. And down will come Hayley, in-to Mommy's arms._"

Hayley was silent for a moment, her green eyes calculating, before she screamed again.

"That's my luck," I mumbled, standing up and walking around the room. After a few minutes of that, I walked out into the hallway and made my way to our bedroom. Maybe she'd sleep if she were in the bed with us.

When Percy heard my footsteps, he sat up in bed and rubbed his red eyes. "Have you ever seen a baby cry so much?" he asked, smirking softly. "I think she has your temper."

I rolled my eyes, but grinned. "As long as she doesn't have your brains, I'm fine."

"Oh, ha-ha."

I sat down next to him on the bed and laid Hayley down on the comforter. Her yelling quieted to a little shriek every now and then as she inspected her new surroudings. The shrieks died down as well, and Hayley rubbed her eyes with her balled up fists, yawning as she did so.

Her eyes fluttered slowly to a close, and Percy and I held our breaths. _Had this really worked? _I wondered, as we stayed still for a few moments. Hayley's breathing evened out as she fell asleep.

Percy and I glanced at each other slowly, before smiling and releasing the sigh we had been holding in.

The moment we did so, Hayley's eyes flew open, and her chin whimpered for a few seconds before she screamed again. Percy groaned and slammed a pillow in his face, falling backwards on the matress.

I groaned myself, thinking hard. _What calms a baby? Rocking chair? No, that failed. Singing? Eh...But what about music itself? Hmm..._

I snapped and stood up, running to the living room. I yanked up the CD player from the entertainment stand, and grabbed a stack of CDs. Running back to the room, I shoved the cord into a wall outlet, opened up the top and a CD case, and jammed the CD inside.

Percy was giving me a weird look, as if saying, _You've finally lost it, Annabeth, _but I just continued what I was doing. I grabbed Hayley's basonet from the corner, which we had recieved during the baby shower, and pulled it close to the CD player. I put Hayley in it, and then pressed the play button.

Soothing music by Bach rang out into the room. It seemed to confuse her, so she cried more. I switched it to a pop CD. Instant screaming. I went through mine and Percy's entire collection of music (which, believe me, was a lot) and came to nothing left but a CD only I liked.

I sat next to Percy and showed him the case. He made a small face, but I didn't care right then.

"She'll like it. I know it." I said. He didn't look so sure.

"Whatever you say, Wise Girl." Percy said, rubbing his eyes again. I could just see how tired he was. It was pretty much evident.

"Trust me, Seaweed Brain. Was it not Sherlock Holmes who stated that "Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth."?" I asked, sticking the CD in the player.

Percy looked at me funny again. "How should I know?"

"Just believe me, Perseus." I sighed, pressing the play button and laying down on the bed. If this didn't stop her from crying, I was just going to go to sleep and let her cry it out. That's how tired I truly was, that I'd let my own daughter cry herself to sleep.

_Folsom Prison Blues _by Johnny Cash floated from the player, and I smiled as I heard it. I got lost in singing along, and didn't realize until Percy hit my knee what had happened.

Hayley was silent. A small smile was on her pink lips. Her green eyes glanced at me, and a 'gah' sound came from her mouth.

"You like that?" I asked, smiling.

"You _like _that?" Percy asked, looking incredulous. Hayley blinked a couple of times, before returning her attention back to the music as _Ring of Fire _started. Not long after _Man in Black _had ended, Hayley was sound asleep in her basonet. It didn't look like anything could've woken her up.

I slowly raised myself from the bed, and walked over to the player. I wanted to conduct a test and see what would happen. I turned the volume down, and Hayley stirred a little bit. I put it back on, and she was back to being sound asleep.

I smiled. This was my ticket.

Somehow, Percy and I managed to get her back to the nursery and keep the music playing, which kept Hayley asleep.

We inched out of her room slowly, and then sprinted to our room, collapsing on the bed. "I told you it would work, didn't I, Seaweed Brain?" I asked, closing my eyes tightly.

He laughed quietly. "You did." Percy gave me a quick kiss on the lips. "Goodnight."

"Night," I said, and was out in two seconds flat.

* * *

><p><strong>Whoo! Thank you Jesus, I finally got it DONE! :D :D :D :D<strong>

**Anywhoot, once again, thank you The Greek Goddess Athena, aka, Suzie. Me making Hayley like Johnny Cash is forever in your debt. :)**

**Hope you enjoyed! **

**~Future**


	14. M'das wirl, M'das wirl

**A/N: We all remember Annabeth's dream, right? Well, I started doing some research, and I found the perfect monster to play the spot! It's called an Undine. It's only description is that it appears usually has a beautiful woman. So, I figure, why not expound on it? Also, a good reviewer (poo, I forgot which one...:P ) asked if Annabeth was ever going to tell Percy about it (the dream). And I got to thinking - why not? It'd add to the story, even though this is still a LONG shot in the dark. :)**

**Anyway, I just thought I should clarify the fact that I'm describing this monster myself before anyone goes making accusations or questioning my ways. ;]**

**I'm just special like that...**

**Me: I need to get started on my homework. **

**K: Well, then, why aren't you?**

**Me: *groans* I'm lazzzzy...and I also don't own PJO. **

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

It took forever (around two months, with my c-section and all) to finally decide who was going to stay home with Hayley. We didn't have a full time sitter yet, and most of the ones we would choose were either working full-time jobs or had their own kids to worry about. (Thalia, Katie, and Sally to be exact.)

Here's what we finally figured out: Move my office into the other spare room.

My Johnny Cash CD played in the car as we drove to my old office to get everything from it that I'd need.

I bit the end of my bottom lip nervously. "Are you _positive _we just couldn't move all of your classes into the house?"

Percy tried to stiffle his laugh, but still smiled. "Annabeth, it wouldn't be very wise to do that, now, would it? Besides, I couldn't teach class _and _feed Hayley at the same time."

"It wouldn't be too hard!" I pointed out, starring ahead. "I mean, all that you'd have to do was hold her in the crook of your arm and prop her bottle up with one hand while you used the other and your voice to teach."

Percy smirked and glanced at me. "No, Annabeth Chase-Jackson."

I crossed my arms and scowled at him, which made him snort and continue driving.

"Gah," Hayley said, pointing to my work building as we pulled up into my parking space.

I smiled. "This is where Mommy _used _to work, Moon. Now we have to go get the stuff. You ready?" Her green eyes sparkled as she glanced about the car. She didn't respond, but I really hadn't expected her to.

Percy and I got out of the front, me getting Hayley from her carseat and carrying her inside. My building was huge; a true archetectural anomily. Hayley's eyes went wide as we walked inside, darting this way and that, trying to take it all in at once. I laughed as I held my hand behind her neck, so it wouldn't over-wiegh her.

We continued walking, someone stopping me in the hallway to the office. It was Miranda, my assitant.

"Oh, Mrs. Jackson!" She exclaimed. "Is this Hayley? She's so cute!"

I smiled nervously. Miranda had never seemed that right in the head to me, but I never complained. She was definitely someone who kept the conversation interesting on long, boring days.

"Yes, this is - "

"Her eyes are so pretty! They look just like Percy's!"

"Well, she is Percy's daughter..." I giggled nervously, wanting to seriously get Hayley away from Miranda. I didn't need her mind messed up just yet. "But, anyway, Miranda, we need to get going." I slid past her and continued on walking towards my office. Percy followed behind me, shaking his head in an annoyed way as Miranda waved and said, "Bye Percy, Hayley, Annabeth!".

"She scares me," Percy mumbled in my ear as we walked into my office and started taking down the boxes I had already pilled up. I placed Hayley in a small craddle someone had given me at work and I had never bothered to bring back home.

As we started putting trophies and pictures and books into the boxes, Hayley started fussing.

"What's the matter sweetheart?" I asked, standing and taking a box full of books with me. She peered up at me, and I saw her trying to form something with her mouth, but she couldn't get it out yet.

She closed her mouth, looking utterly frustrated, and started making noises from behind her lips. _Hmm, hmm, hm. _Huh, it sounded a bit like _Folsom Prison Blues _from the Johnny Cash CD...oh.

I smiled. "Do you want some music, Hayles?" She made a somewhat jerking motion toward the door, and I would've swore her eyes were practically begging as she tried to say 'yes'.

"M'ab!" She finally squeeled, and I could tell by the glare that I had in her eyes she was irritated that she couldn't talk yet. With a smile still on my face, I walked out of the room, and back down the hall, placing the box in the car and getting her CD out.

I ran back, catious not to get caught in another Miranda trap. I was about to enter the room, when a loud cry pierced my ears. I ran inside my office, Miranda standing there with Hayley in her arm.

Except, that wasn't Miranda. It was the creature from my dream, scaly claws and all. _An undine. _I should've known.

"What are you _doing_? !" I screeched, yanking my knife from its sheath. Pure murder burned in my grey eyes. "Put. My. Daughter. _Down_." I commanded, raising the tip of the celestial bronze tool to her chest.

She hissed at me, and all I could remember about the undine came floating back to me. Retched sea-dwelers, usually apearing as beautiful women in the mortal world. She knew I wouldn't have expected a thing.

"You've done a good job," I commented, Percy now backing me up with Riptide fully elongated.

"What do you mean, daughter of Athena?" she asked, her tongue like a snakes flickering back and forht between her sharp, razor-blade like teeth.

"Hiding from me for that long," I shrugged. "Takes true skill, I guess. Now, about my daughter?" I lunged forward and tried for a stab. I got a centimeter from her chest when her mouth snapped at me, nearly taking off four of my fingers.

My strategic mind immediately started planning. I had five major goals: Take the monster down, get my daughter back, make sure she was okay, stab the creature to death, and then make sure her remains got back to Tatarus itself.

And there was only one way to do. "Percy," I whispered out of the side of my mouth. "When I count to three, aim your sword for Hayley."

"What?" He asked, an epic what the heck face on his features. "Annabeth, are you crazy? What if celestial bronze can kill her like us?"

"That's the plan. One..." I started targeting as Miranda started for us both, looking at us like we were nuts for not even trying for escape. "Two..." Miranda's claws became something from a horror movie - pitch black and motionless, glinting with a scent of death on its very texture. I glanced at Hayley once more, her eyes studying the situation with ease. I could tell from her expression, she was about to scream.

_Hold it in, hold it in... _I thought deperately. _Just for a couple more seconds... _"Three!" I shouted, and Percy, although it seemed to defy his every will, took aim for Hayley and launched himself forward.

Miranda, doing as I expected, recoiled from him and hid Hayley behind her. That's where I came into play.

As she and Percy were distracted, I rounded her in one swift movement, stabbed her in the back which brought on something that cannot be described as a shriek, or a scream, or anything I would even call a sound. But it was awful - a screech and yelp and anger scream combined. As she fell, I yanked Hayley from her grasp, and climbed to the top of my old desk with one step. I craddled Moon softly as I glared at Percy.

"Kill her." I stated, no emotion in my voice or eyes. "Kill her now."

He didn't need any convincing. With one swipe, the beast was gone, turned into yellow sulfer dust and gone in a matter of moments.

Cumbersome silence filled the room. Percy offered me his hand, which I took and hopped down off the desk. We both stared at Moon, her eyes looking at us, back and forth, back and forth.

"Gah?" She finally said, her gaze piercing.

I cracked a small smile, as did Percy. That when I noticed a small gash in her forehead - not one that would need stitches, but one that would definitely cause a scar as she got older and matured more than she already was.

I touched it softly, which made her cringe slightly. "Shh, shh," I said, looking at it closer. "It's okay, Moon. I promise." I lifted her up to me and kissed her forehead. "It'll always be okay."

We got the rest of the boxes packed, along with the basonet, in an hour flat. The ride home was filled with silence - we didn't even have the CD going. Hayley didn't seem too interested in if either it was on or not. She was looking out the window, examining the mixture blending of grass and trees.

Eventually, Hayley looked into the rearview mirror, and I could once again see her lips trying to form ditorted words. What she finally came up with was, "D'ats wirl s'dearwee."

Percy looked at me with a questioning glance, while I smiled slyly. "She said that girl is scary." I said, smiling wider. "She said that. My little girl _said that." _

"Annabeth, she's two months old. It's just babble." Percy said. I rolled my eyes.

"I don't care what you say. My daughter can talk at _two months old. _She's such her mother's child."

Percy chuckled. "That she is."

Another silence filled the car, and my mind kept drifting back to my dream. "I..." I began slowly. "I know why the undine attacked." I said.

Percy looked at me. "What?"

I took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. "Months ago, when we were at the hospital, the next day...I had a dream that night. The undine visited me, and warned that Hayley was going to become something that she wasn't." I paused as his eyesbrows knitted together like they always do when he's worried. It made me remember that time in the second Titan War, when I first saw how cute he was up close, with his eyebrows like that.

"And...I didn't believe her. I didn't know she'd come and try to take Hayley, but she did. I should've known she'd try something like that..." I made an irritated face. "Zeus, I feel so _stupid! _Isn't a mother supposed to know when their kids are in danger? Geez!" I felt awful now. I knew I shouldn't, but I did.

"Annabeth, you don't know everything, no matter how smart you are." Percy pointed out, pulling up in the driveway.

"But I'm the daughter of Athena! I should know these things..."

Percy smiled as he parked the car. "Wise Girl, it'll be fine." He kissed me, and when he pulled away, I was going to say something when, suddenly, Moon began laughing hysterically, which made us laugh too.

"M'das wirl, M'das wirl!" MJ shouted, laughing in between her slowly forming words. Percy glanced in my direction.

"Mama's girl, Mama's girl." I said.

"M'das wirl!" Hayley shouted again. We couldn't help but continue laughing all the way into the house.

* * *

><p><strong>So. I finished my homework! Yay! Thank God! So...<strong>

**Hope you enjoyed! :D **

**~Future**


	15. Animal Crackers

**A/N: So, this chapter, believe it or not, is inspired by something I did at this age, amazingly and I'm thanking God for it. But when I was seven months old, I knew how to walk. **

**So...I think you can see where this is going for this granddaughter of Athena. ;]**

**Me: Homework needs to be done...Gone With the Wind needs to be read...I need sleep...I...need...to say the...discl...zzzzzzz *lays head down on HQ laptop***

**K: *gasp* I'll do it! She doesn't own PJO!**

**Me: *mumbles in sleep***

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

"Percy, can you go to the store for me?" I asked, looking at the TV screen. Percy had had the day off today, whereas I hadn't.

He sat there, watching Finding Nemo with Hayley, a movie in which he'd recently got her addicted to. Not that I minded - it truly was a good movie. "What?" He asked, looking at me.

I rolled my eyes. "We're almost out of Hayley's favorite brand of animal crackers, Seaweed Brain. We need some more."

"What difference does it make what brand it is?" He asked, placing the now pouting Hayley on her pallet and standing up. I smiled and handed him his car keys and gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"It's just does. Trust me," I said as Percy headed for the door, about to leave, when I called behind him, "Thank you!"

He rolled his eyes and closed the door, leaving me an Hayley all alone to ourselves. "Wanna go in the kitchen, Hales? So we're closer to Mama's office?"

She frowned up at me. "Buh' Daddy and I 'posed to watch Neeemo."

I paused the movie and picked her up, seeing as how she couldn't walk yet, and took her into the kitchen. "We'll watch it with Daddy when he gets back from the store, okay?"

Her frown deepened, but she nodded, "O'tae, Mommy."

A few minutes went by, and the six month old Hayley sat in her high chair, chewing contently on one of those squishy-rings. She had started teething a few weeks ago, and had been biting on that thing ever since.

"Ma'da?" She asked, drawing me back from the book I currently had my nose stuck in to.

"Yes, Moon?" I replied, setting the book down witht he page open so I wouldn't loose my place.

"I'd hund'ry."

"Really? What do you want?"

She seemed to think it over for a moment, and I could see those little wheels turning in her mind. She truly was smart, wasn't she?

"Aminal c'ackers." Hayley finally said, going back to chewing on her ring-toy. I smiled and stood from the stool to get what she wanted, when my phone rang in my office. I looked at her saddly.

"Give Mama a minute, okay?"

She nodded. "O'tae momma."

Running off to my office, I didn't expect her to do anything. But, boy was I wrong.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Third Person POV<br>_**

As her mother ran off, the six-month-old's stomach growled. She really was hungry, and wanted nothing more than just a few animal crackers to satisfy her. _Suppose I could walk, _she thought intently, although she knew in herself if would be months if even up to a year before she could say it out loud. _Like Momma does. _Hayley examined the board which kept her from leaving her spot.

_How to get out is the main question, _she thought, looking around without much luck. Perhaps a screwdriver or wrench? But niether was in her reach. _Maybe I could squeeze out? _Hayley put her hands on the sides of the high-chair, trying to nudge herself out. That didn't work, either.

She huffed, frustrated. She hated pulling out the Plan C Card. Hated it.

But she knew it was the only way to get out of the chair. Mustering up energy, and preparing her lungs, Hayley released a scream that echoed around the house. She made tears follow and continued to wail.

Annabeth, hearing the cry, ran from her office with a phone pressed tight to her ear. "What's the matter, sweetie?" She asked, taking her out of the high-chair. Hayley's cries stumbled to a wimper as she pointed at the ground.

"D'wn!" She squealed. "D'wn!" Annabeth grinned and, taking her to the living room first, placed her on her pallet, and then left to go back to her work.

"No, we don't have enough - I don't care what he says - but - no, I'm the designer. Do what I say, got it?" She said, having a sperate conversation with one of her workers as she re-entered her office.

Hayley dismissed it as such, and rolled around on the pallet. She, honestly - no matter how smart she was - had no idea how to get to her feet. She'd seen Annabeth do it a million times - how hard could it be?

_I have to crawl first, _she finally decided. _And then I can get to my feet. _

With determination that came from Athena's side of the family, Hayley experimented with this theory for several minutes, most of the times ending up on her bottom and shrieking every time she did so.

_It surely isn't this hard for Momma and Daddy..._she thought angrily, looking around for something to pull herself up on. _It's just like getting on the couch. _She told herself. _Just lift youself up. _

Crawling like one of her Uncle Zeus' lightning bolts, she made way for the couch, placing both of her elbows and forearms on the couch's cushions. She pulled her feet up underneath her, and stood, still gripping the couch as she bobbled slightly, her balance unnerving to herself and the world around her.

Hayley felt like she was going to fall, but pushed that thought to the back of her expanding mind. She took a deep breath, released it, and then let go off the couch, closing her eyes tightly.

Positive she was going to fall, she braced for impact but nothing happened. Hayley cracked her eyes open, glancing around. She was still standing.

Hayley giggled with happiness and clapped her little hands as she dared to turn and take a step. She moved! Hayley giggled some more, continuing a step-by-step motion, making it to the kitchen faster than she had expected.

Laughing manically, she placed both hands on the fridge's front, and opened the door by standing on her tip-toes. Her stomach rumbled as she scooted out of the way of the fridge, seeing her animal crackers on the very bottom shelf. Today was just her lucky day, Hayley thought smuggly, taking the box and yanking it open with her fist.

She didn't realize she had left the door to the fridge open, as she tottled back to Annabeth's office. "'ook, M'da!" She squealed, biting into a cracker. "'ook!"

"What is it Hay - " Annabeth paused, starring wide eyed at her six-month-old daughter, standing and walking into the room with ease, eating her animal crackers peacefully.

"Oh, my God!" Annabeth said, smiling like a lunatic and dropping the phone, a muffled voice still asking questions on the opposite end. "Look at you," she mused, squating down to meet the little girl in the eyes. "You're growing up so fast."

Hayley smiled with pride. "I m'ow, M'da! I m'ow!"

Annabeth laughed lightly. "_Know._" She corrected. Hayley just rolled her eyes and continued to munch on her crackers, until a strong voice came from the kitchen,

"Why is the fridge wide open?"

"Daddy!" Hayley sqeaked, running from Annabeth's office and into the kitchen, where she met her dad with open arms. Percy smiled down at her, and then looked at Annabeth.

"How many months old is she again?"

"Six," Annabeth sighed happily, looking at Hayley before closing the fridge.

"Seems like three weeks." mumbled Percy, picking Hayley up. She smiled wide at him, and that's when he saw a glint of white on her bottom jaw. He smiled at her, and then said to Annabeth, "First steps is not the only thing she got today."

"Huh?" Annabeth asked, coming to stand beside him. He pointed to where Hayley had two new little teeth, in the very front of her bottom jaw.

Annabeth laughed, leaning into Percy. "She's a little me." Percy smirked.

"She is," and then kissed Annabeth on the lips. As always, Hayley began to laugh uncontrolably, finding this the funniest thing in the world. But Annabeth and Percy didn't care this time.

When she and Percy broke apart, Annabeth kissed Hayley's forehead, and together they all did a family-group hug.

"Animal crackers _do _make a difference," Annabeth said, when a sudden realization hit her. "I'm on a conference call!" And then she ran back to her office. Percy just smiled as he watched her go, and took Hayley to the living room, sitting down and watching Finding Nemo for the umpteenth time with his little girl.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, so, I had no idea how to end this, take the sappy ending as is, please. <strong>

**Hope you enjoyed, sorry if it isn't good. I honestly tried. :P**

**~Future**


	16. Worst Day Ever

**A/N: GUYS! SERIOUSLY! Calm down! It's not the end! As I explained to Mrs. Percy Potter, this story is far from over! I had no idea how to end that last CHAPTER so I did THAT! Goodness gracious! Also, I know it may seem a little unbelievable for a six month old to walk, but I mean - it's Hayley! She's the granddaughter of Athena, daugther of Annabeth Chase, and started talking at TWO MONTHS OLD! So, it makes sense to me, and I hope it'll start making more sense to some of you who said so. Not that I'm mad or anything. I'm just glad I'm able to clear stuff like this up...**

**Anyway! I just thought I should say this so you would all stop freaking out. Sheesh, guys...:D**

**Also, Di? Gah, stop beating yourself down. It's fine, you weren't late! I am. Just getting your review makes it seem like I did at least ONE thing right, not that I don't also love the others! They keep me going! That and God, of course. :D**

**Me:...Okay, that's the last time I type that for the end of the chapter. I will not type that until the TRUE end of the story.**

**Choco: ...Ohhhkkaaaayyyy...**

**Me: You've had sugar, haven't you?**

**Choco: YES! She doesn't own PJO. **

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

I was freaking out. I was literally freaking out. Had it seriously been a year since she was born?

Truth was, it had.

It was late November, and I was running about the house, trying to get things in a straight order for the party. Thalia, sitting on the couch and sipping on a coke, looked up at me as I started fidgeting in the living room, looking over my long list of things I had to do that day.

"You need to take a break," She said, patting the cushion next to her. "You're gonna work yourself to death and to be honest, it wouldn't be too much fun."

"I am not!" I said, biting my nails as I went back over the list in my head. _Toys, a room, present table, cake, chips, music - music! _I still hadn't got the music. Of course, it was a simple thing, I'd just have to go get her Johnny Cash CD and -

_SNAP! _The sound was as loud as day. My head snapped around to see Ellie, holding a broken disc in her three-year-old hands. "Whoops," she mumbled, her cheeks flarring. She looked straight at me, and saw how I was about to explode.

But instead I just sighed and ran a hand through my curls, pulling my hair up in a ponytail so I could think clearer. I guess I'd just have to run to the store to get a new CD. It shouldn't be too hard, right? Anyway, I had to go get some balloons and a few more party decorations.

I walked swiftly past Ellie, picking up the two seperate CD parts and throwing them in the trash as I left. I got in my car, put the key into the ignition, and turned it forward. The Honda made some strangling sounds, before sputering out. I huffed in irritation and tried again. Same result. I groaned, and tried one more time, crossing my fingers in hopes that it would work.

It started to shake a little, and I think I heard it catch, when it sputtered out again. I tried and tried and tried. The result? Nothing. After three more trials, I realized nothing was going to happen.

"Ugh," I said, laying my head on the steering wheel. Why was today not going at all like I'd planned?

The plan was, simply, to make the best one-year-old party in the world. I know, I know, she probably wouldn't remember this and all, but I had this terrible desire to make it all perfect.

I glanced up to see if Percy was home from work yet. Nope. What now? Thalia didn't have a car, Nico wasn't here yet, nor were Katie and Travis, as they had left Ellie here so they could go buy a present for Hayley. Turns out Ellie can't keep a secret. I found that out myself the hard way. This was all going down hill fast. Very, very fast.

I started praying that maybe if I tried one more time that it would work. I cranked the car, and, much to my amazement, it started. "Thank you," I breathed, backing out of the driveway and pulling out into the highway. I got my cell phone out, remembering that I had forgotten to tell Thalia where I was going.

"Yeah?" She asked into the phone once she picked up.

"Thalia!" I nearly screamed.

"Yes, that's my name. What is it?"

"Listen, I need you to watch Hayley and Ellie for me. I'm heading to the store. I'll be back in a few."

"Okay...wait, you need me to wh - ! " I didn't wait for her full response. I just shut the phone, and turned it off, because I knew how Thalia was. She would try and call me back to argue about it, but once she saw that she couldn't reach me, she'd give up and do as I'd...somewhat asked. Oh, you know what I mean!

I started humming along to the radio as I drove down 2-80, when I heard that sputtering sound again, like something that was going out of loosing steam. "No," I said, as the car started to slow down. "God, no..." too late. The car litterally stopped in the highway, and it took everything I had in me not to scream my lungs out. So much for a "perfect" day.

I got out of the car and slammed the door, taking the keys and my bag with me. Using my iPhone, I figured out where I was as I stood on the side of the road, getting questioning looks from all the other drivers. I just smiled and waved sarcastically if they did so, and found that I was about a mile and half from Wal-Mart. Not too long a jog, or a walk. I could make that, and still make it back in time for the party. Right?

I started jogging down the road line of 2-80, this time getting some serious cucko looks from the drivers and their passengers. I just went right on jogging, smiling as I did so. Nothing else was going to ruin this day. Nothing at all.

Wrong.

It's just my luck, is it not, to be stopped by a monster in the middle of my jog down the highway?

It is.

You would aslo think that dracnae would learn when and when not to show up to a mad Annabeth, right?

Right.

One of them cackled. "Well lookey here. It'sss a daughter of Athena. Annabeth Chassse."

"Oh, no!" The other cooed. "Ssshe got married! It'sss now Annabeth Jackssson!"

"Let usss quake in fear then! Ssshe's a Jackssson!" The first one laughed. With each comment my temper only rose higher and higher. I was at my boiling point, and I was sure they could see the steam lifting off from my head.

"Oooh! Ssshe's angry! Pleassse ssspare usss, daughter of Athena!" the second one pretended to cower in fear.

"Oh, yesss, pleassse, daughter of Athena! Do not ssstare at usss, we aren't worthy of your intelligence!"

They were joking. About my _intelligence. _That's a bigger insult to a child of Athena - no, that's the _biggest _insult to a child of Athena. I pulled my dagger out from its sheath, and they started for a moment, before laughing again.

"Look at thisss, sssissster!" the first one said. "Being a mother hasss made her even more vicious!"

"Oh, yesss, her daughter! I bet the brat can't even talk! How old isss ssshe? A year?"

Okay, I was wrong. Now they were insulting my _daughter. That's _the biggest insult to _anyone. _As they closed their eyes and laughed at my furry, I ran straight ahead, and killed them both in a matter of seconds, spraying monster dust all over myself, and managing to cut my forehead from swining my knife around.

Once again, how bad can my luck get?

Pretty bad.

I kept jogging, then tripped over a stick, and twisted my ankle on the fall down. I laid on the ground for a moment, before pushing myself up and limping to the Wal-Mart. After minutes and minutes, maybe even an hour of this, I saw Wal-Mart straight ahead.

I did what any woman trying to get back to her daughter's first birthday party in pain would do.

I ran. I ran into the parking lot, across it, into the store, and to the back, where the music was.

I scanned the music shelves, and none of them held a single Johnny Cash. What? I checked again.

Nothing. Not a one.

I cried out in rage, and ran my hands through my curly hair, which was falling down after everything that had happened that day. And it wasn't even three 'o clock. A clerk woman came up behind me, and tapped my shoulder.

I turned around, and probably scared her, my eyes tense with anger, and my face redder than a tomatoe. "A-are you okay?" she stumbled out.

I tried to hold back all that I wanted to say, but I couldn't. "No. No, I'm not okay! It's my daughter's first birthday, I wanted it all to be perfect, but of course, nothing goes perfect for me! My daughter loves Johnny Cash, and has a special CD she listens to, and my goddaughter broke it! So, I went out to my car, tried to get it started, it wouldn't start! Then it did, and I started driving, and I thought it would finally work, but it didn't! It stopped in the middle of the freakin' highway! Then I joggged here! But, on the way, I got attakced by dr - I mean, rabbid dogs, had to fight them off. That's how I got this gash up here!" I pointed to the point where I'd gotten cut, and sighed mentally. I almost said dracnae. That would've made me look practically insane, not that I already wasn't.

"I then fell and tripped on a stick, twisting my ankle. I limped here, ran across the parking lot to get in here to find a new Johnny Cash CD, there's not one, and I have to be at the party in..." I checked my watch. "Fifteen minutes!" I paused. "Not to _mention _I've had to pee since a half-hour ago and I feel like my bladder's about to explode!"

I could tell that last comment really freaked her out, but I just needed to vent everything.

But she smiled kindly at me. "Come with me. I think I can fix all of this. I'm Anne, by the way."

"I'm Annabeth," I said, following behind her as she led me into places I didn't think normal people were supposed to be in. Not that I was normal in any way. "And...I'm sorry about that back there. Today's just been rough..."

"I know what you mean," Anne said, taking me into a back room full of new shipping supplies. "It's always tough with the first birthday. My little girl just had her second last Tuesday."

"Really?" I asked. "What's her name?"

"June," Anne replied, digging through a box marked, **MARK DOWN CDs! **"June Catherine. She's a sweet little thing. What's yours named?"

"Hayley...Hayley Moonlight Jackson. We call her Moon."

"Moon, huh? Sounds like a precious name."

"Thank you. And, she is. But I think every mother thinks that about their children."

Anne shrugged as she yanked a CD from the box and handed it to me. It looked exactly like the one Ellie had broken. "Some do, some don't." She replied.

"Thank you, so much!" I sighed, holding the CD tight.

She smiled. "No problem. I could aslo get you a cold pack for your ankle, if you'd like."

I smiled back. "No, ma'am. I think I'll be fine." She grinned and nodded, leading me back out of the back rooms. "I'll just eat some ambrosia and drink a little bit of nectar later..."

"What was that?" Anne asked sweetly.

"Nothing." I said, as she led me back out into the aisles of the Wal-Mart. "Thanks again."

"Not a problem. Send Moon a birthday wish for me."

"I will," I promised. "And tell Miss June I said I hope she had a wonderful birthday."

"I will," Anne said, walking away to go back to her job.

Smiling, I went to the bakery, and got a cake. It wasn't exactly what we had in mind, but it was better than nothing. In fact, it was a Finding Nemo cake, so surely Hayley would enjoy it.

I got in line for paying, and saw two people that made me sigh in relief. "Travis, Katie!" I said, hugging them both, though it was really unusual for me.

"Annabeth?" They both asked.

"W-what are you doing here? I thought you were watching Ellie." Katie said, though she looked quite happy to see me.

"You'll never believed what happened." I said, and told them the entire story as we both paid for our purchases and left the store.

"And, in conclusion, I seriously need a ride, Katie. Can I have one, please?"

"Of course!" Katie said cheerfully, opening the trunk to their car and putting the bags in.

"If it's a ride you wanted, you could've just said so," Travis mumbled. Katie hit his shoulder.

"Be nice, Travis Stoll." She said, getting in the passenger seat. He rolled his eyes and said something that sounded like, "Yes, Katie Stoll," as he got in the driver's seat. I sat in the back, and waited patiently as we all pulled out. We were back at the house in less time than it took me to leave it, and we went in. Ellie, Hayley, Nico and Percy were all sitting in the floor, playing a game.

Thalia sat on the couch, for some reason covered in glitter and something sticky, like syrup.

Ellie gasped, "Mommy! Daddy!" as she ran over to us and hugged her parents.

Hayley coppied her gasp,"Mama! Aun' Katie! Uncle T'avis!" and then ran over and hugged us all, too.

Ellie smirked, now seeing this as a game between her and Hayley. She gasped, "MJ!" and hugged her.

Moon gasped. "Ellis!" Shouted Hayley, hugging Ellie.

Ellie smiled, while Katie and I looked at Hayley. "Ellis?" we asked in unison.

Ellie and Hayley nodded. "Ellis," Hayley said.

"It's my name. My _nick _name, Annabef. Duh."

"Elizabeth Stoll, you need to be nice, too." Katie said, nudging Travis in the shoulder, who just rolled his eyes again.

Ellie sighed. "Sorry, Mommy. Sorry Annabef."

I laughed and picked them both up. "It's okay, _Ellis._"

Ellie laughed, but Hayley frowned.

"What's the matter, MJ?" Ellie asked.

Hayley's frown deepened. "I call you d'at. Mommy should not call you d'at."

I started to say something, but Ellie beat me to it. "It's okay, MJ. Because I'll always call you MJ, so you're unique, making anything you say unique, of course!"

Hayley furrowed her brows for a second, thinking it all out as if she would come up with some intelligent saying to go along with that.

And then -

"Yay!" Hayley cheered, literally almost jumping from my arms to the ground and running off with Ellie. Katie and I started laughing, smiling like idiots. They were so funny - funnier than I was at that age, that's for sure. They must have both inherited their fathers' genes.

I looked over at Thalia, whose eyes were wide, and she tapped her fingers nervously on her thigh. "You okay?" I asked, coming and sitting next to her while Katie went and sat in the kitchen with Travis.

She turned her head slowly toward me, her blues eyes as electrifying as ever. "D-don't you _ever _leave me alone with children. _Never _again." she said, brushing glitter out of her choppy hair. "I might never get this stuff washed out. I can just imagine the girls laughing at me now - 'Look at the lieutenant who's hair is covered in glittered and uniform in maple syrup!'. How did Hayley and Ellie even get a_ holt_ of that."

I surpressed my smirk and chuckle. "They're two very intelligent girls."

"More like two little children looking for World War Three..."

I nudged her shoulder. "Be nice. One is your goddaughter, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, I know..."

A little while later, Nico showed up, along with Rachel and Malcolm. Dad, my step-mother, and the twins arrived a little after that, with Connor and his girlfriend Shelby in tow. Sally and Paul showed up, and we all figured the Olympians wouldn't be coming. We were wrong.

The doorbell rang and I went to get it, thinking that maybe we had forgotten someone who said they were coming.

I jumped a little when I saw Mom and Poseidon in the starts of an argument at the door. "M-Mom?" I asked. "Poseidon?"

"You seem bemused, Annabeth. Did you honestly think I wouldn't be here for my granddaughter's first birthday?" Mom asked.

"Well, I, uh - " I took a deep breath and sighed. "Yes, Mother. Please, come in."

She walked in without another word, and Poseidon smiled kindly at me before coming in. The rest of the party, amazingly, went as planned. Athena only tried to kill Percy twice, to which he kept smiling and replying with nice words while Hayley and Ellie were present. But I knew in his mind he was wishing he could say something very insulting.

We sang happy birthday and gave Hayley her cake. But she couldn't have cared less, as her eyes kept drifting towards to presents. She got to them eventually. Nico gave her a shield made of stygion iron, which I was skeptical about.

"What?" he asked, holding his hands up defensively. "She'll need a shield one day. Why not now?"

"She's one!" Katie said, seeming appalled. "Thank Zeus you didn't give Ellie anything like that. She'd go nuts over it and use it to play some prank on the boys at her day care."

"She is her daddy's girl," Travis smiled wide as we pushed the next gift over to Moon's open hands. She ripped the silver paper off, and looked at it questioningly.

"Air-row?" She asked, holding up the silver bow and arrow set Thalia had given her.

"Thalia, seriously." Percy said. "A bow and arows?"

Thalia shrugged. "Eh. It seemed to fit her fiesty personality. Plus, it doesn't get real tips until she's at least eleven. Magically enchanted. She can play with them and not get hurt until then."

I thought about it for a second. "I think it's a wonderful gift." I said, and nudged Moon. "Go tell Aunt Thalia thank you." She bounced up and ran over, hugging Thalia and then running back and pulling another present to her. It was sea green, blue wave designs on the front. Percy's gift. She tore the paper off, and inside was a cardboard box.

Before I could even think to help her open it, she had the top off and was holding up a turtle-shaped _Pillow Pet. _She smiled wide and stood up, jumping up and down. "'ook, 'ook Ellis! I gots a pi-whoa pet!"

"Awesome!" Ellie said, jumping around with her. "Mommy, I want a pillow pet, too!"

"Maybe for Christmas, Ellie." Katie said, looking as the girls jumped around until they could hardly catch their breath. Katie and Travis had bought her a baby doll that could really swim, and I had gotten her a cute grey dress and the new CD. Dad got her a stuffed plush duck, and Malcolm a Fisher Price cell phone. She loved it all, and hardly even noticed that she still hadn't gotten one from her Olympian Grandparents.

Poseidon presented his gift first. "Hayley, I want you to have this," he held out a pencil in his hand, which made a questioning look come over both mine and Hayley's faces.

Poseidon smiled cheerfully. It's a magic pencil, much like _Anaklusmos. _Except this turns into a dagger, like that of Annabeth's. I hope you don't mind, but I figured she'd need a weapon eventually, as monsters will always be on her trail."

I nodded in agreement. "Makes sense," I looked to Percy. "Right?"

He seemed to be lost elsewhere, watching Hayley with careful eyes as she experimented with her new dagger; turning it from pencil to dagger, to pencil again. She and Ellie found it quite comical. He nodded, though, and I took that as his answer before he got a chance to change his mind.

Athena cleared her throat, which immediately got everyone's attention. "I'd like to give the child this," a book suddenly appeared in her hands - a picture book on the great Greek myths and gods/goddesses.

I smirked. "Eager for her to learn, Mom?"

She cocked an eyebrow at me. "Yes, I am. She does need to know her heritage, does she not?"

"Well, yes..." I suddenly felt really stupid, even though I knew I wasn't. I guess it was just the presense of the goddess of wisdom there or something like that. Or maybe it was because my day was bad enough already, and it needed something else to add on to it.

Mom smiled at me, though, and I couldn't help but smile back. When she was trying to be nice, it was hard not to, because she could make anyone smile.

The party was over shortly after that. Everyone left, leaving only Percy, Hayley and I. Moon started to cry when Ellie left, but we managed to get her to calm down by letting her play with the remote.

It's amazing, really. Little kids like things that seem so ordinary to us - don't give them something _in _a big box, just give them the big box. They'll be a lot happier.

I let out a deep breath, collapsing on the couch. Percy sat next to me, looking at me worriedly; his eyebrows were scrunched together again like they were that day I took the knife for him. I smiled tenderly. "You still look so cute when you're worried."

It made him grin, at least. "Are you okay?" He asked. "Thalia told me it had been a rough day before I got here."

"Boy, has it." I said, sitting up and tucking my legs underneath me in a criss-cross position. I rambled off my story of everything that had happened that day, about everything that went wrong, and how I was possitive that it couldn't get any worse, when it did. And then I told him about the woman at the store. He smiled when I told him about her little girl, and what amazing friends you can make in just one instant.

"And I _still _have to get Moon to go to sleep." I concluded, standing up and cleaning up the small remainder of mess from the party. It was about seven, eight o' clock now. Wouldn't be too much longer until all of us would be out cold.

I walked in to the kitchen, when I felt someone sneaking up behind me. "Perseus..." I started slowly. "What are you - ?" he wrapped his arms around my waist and picked me up, causing me to drop the paper plates and red cup I was holding.

"Percy!" I shouted. "What are you _doing_? !"

"Relax, Annabeth." Percy smiled at me as he continued to carry me throughout the house. We ended up in our room. Percy practically tossed me on the bed, and I couldn't help but wonder what he was up to as he walked into our (and by that I mean my) walk-in closet.

"Perseus Jackson, what are you up to?" I called in there, when he didn't come out after a few minutes.

"Close your eyes!" He called back, as I heard something fall down in a crashing form.

"...What was that?" I asked rather calmly for how I was worrying what he might have broken."

"Nothing, nothing." He said dismissively as he walked in the room with something behind his back. "Close your eyes."

I gave a _Okay, okay, whatever _sigh **(A/N: Haha! Got that from _Paranormalcy. _Oh, Raquel...) **and closed my eyes tight. I heard him moving things and pushing something around. "Okay..." he started, "...and..." he paused once more, fixing something, "...look!" Percy sounded excited as I opened my eyes.

I was only aware of gasping. It was all amazing. He had practically recreated the night where he had proposed - a fake picture of the ocean - at night, of course - with a sand colored blanket on the ground. He had about five stuffed turtles on the ground crawling towards the fake ocean, and a blue flashlight casting a ray of light down on the "sand". A paper ball spray-painted dark grey was hanging by a fishing pole line (which he had tried to hide behind the "ocean", though I could still see it.), which was supposed to represent Hayley's commet. **(A/N: I am aware now that this is not how you spell the true commet's name, but I was trying and that's how it's going to stay) **

"Percy..." I said, marveled at the sight. "Why...why did you do this?"

"Happy Anniversary." He said, matter-of-factly. It was only then did I realize...he was right. He proposed two years ago on this day, November 17th. We got married one year ago, _on this day. _Hayley was born one year ago..._on this day. _Did we have something for the month of November or what?

"Oh, Percy." I said, and then realized also that I had forgotten what today was. "I...I forgot."

He shrugged. "So? Who cares?" He sat down on the "sand". Percy held his hand out to me. "Will you join me, though, Mrs. Wise Girl Jackson?"

I grinned, and took his hand. "Most definitely, Seaweed Brain."

You know, for such a bad day...it wasn't so bad afterall.

* * *

><p><strong>YES! ! ! ! ! ! I finally completed it! Dear goodness! <strong>

**Did you miss me? Now, I'm not going to make any excuses - I don't have one. Not one at all. On the bright side, SON (The Son of Neptune) comes out in...*checks clock*...3 hours and 18 minutes. **

**The taunting is getting worse...**

**Hope you enjoyed. **

**~Future**


	17. First Day Of Whatever

**So, here it is! I kind of wanted this to happen, as I've been doing math on how I wanted to end it. And this was the way it had to be. So, anyway, hope you enjoy. :D**

**Me: Ugh...Me don't own PJO. Simple as that. I own the plot, OCs, and such, thank you Jesus. **

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

I had been dreading this day for a long time now. And now it was here. Of course, now not only was I afraid of what would happen when Moon first walked in there, but I had caught some stomach bug a few nights previous, and was right then heaving up whatever was left of my guts into the toilet.

"Mama?" Moon peeked around the edge of the open bathroom door. She seemed upset. "You okay, Mama?"

"Yes, sweetie." I wiped my mouth for the umpteenth time that morning, and stood up. "What's the matter?"

"Will you pull my hair up, Mama? I wanna look like you today."

I smiled. Moon had that effect on me. "Sure, MJ. Give me a sec." I washed my hands quickly, and then grabbed the hair bursh. She turned around, and I brushed through her hair. It had grown long, silky and smooth. It was mostly blonde, but when you looked at her roots, they were nearly black, like Percy's. "Hairbow?" I asked, trying not to sound too impatient. I had to keep calm, no matter how bad I felt.

To be honest, I didn't look forward to this. I wanted to just look at her and say, "It's okay, Hales. Go get back in the bed, and I'll go curl up on the couch and sleep this off,". But, I couldn't. Law is the law, and sometimes it honestly sucks.

She held it up to me - a grey one, which matched the scrunchee I had used earlier to pull my hair back. I brushed the long blonde hair in to it, tied the bow around a couple of times, and pulled it tight. She turned back around and beamed up at me, "Thanks, Mommy." She twirled around, her new grey dress ruffling as she did so. "How do I look. Do you think they'll like me? Will...will I be able to make friends?" She kept rambling off random questions about what it'd be like, as we walked into the kitchen. I put her lunchbox in her royal blue back-pack, and she grabbed her shoes from the kitchen counter.

Before I could even ask if she wanted help, she had her socks on and grey converse tied. Moon yanked her bookbag from my hands, an threw it on her shoulder.

I smirked. "You're not excited, are you, Moon?"

"Oh, Mama, I'm so excited! See, Ellis and I's gonna play on the playground, and we're gonna eat snack together, and whilst everyone else be napping, we're gonna whisper to each other." She paused for a breath. "You know what we're gonna talk about?"

"What?" I barely had time to ask before she spat out;

"Secrets and such, Mama, that's what we're gonna talk about! Secrets and such - speaking of which, where is Ellis anyway?"

"They should be here any - " a horn honked outside, and I smiled softly. "She's here."

There was a loud pouding on the door, and a six and half year old burst through it at 7: 28 AM. "Oh goodness, Annabeth, Hayley, you'll never _believe _it!" Shouted Ellie.

"What, what? !" Moon practically cried, looking way overly excited.

"I saw..._that dog_."

"_That dog? !_" Hayley pretended to faint at the bar. "Are...are ya sure, Ellis? Are you sure it was _that dog_?"

"Hay, I'm so positive that even Martha Anne Bluck ain't positive...er-er." Ellie said, getitng twisted with her words.

"So positive than Martha Anne ain't even more positive?" Moon whistled slightly. "That's pretty dang positive."

Katie and I exchanged a questioning glance. Our daughters truly were the strangest things since finding out we were demigods.

"You okay?" Katie asked, as we watched the girls continue talking about whatever "_that dog_" was.

"Yeah..." I said distractedly. I felt queasy again; I wasn't sure how long I could keep it down. "I'm fine..."

"You sure?" Katie said again. "I...I mean, Annabeth, look at you. You're pale. And you have bags under your eyes. Been sleeping well?"

"Not at all," I said. I told her about how I'd been sick for the past few days, and how I couldn't stop vomiting for the life of me. She just sat there, nodding a little bit a couple of times, and was about to say something highly philosophical for a daughter of Demeter, when the girls glanced at the clock and screamed.

They screamed and screamed and screamed, then ran out to the car. Except they were smiling the whole time. That's how I knew they weren't being attacked by a monster or anything like that.

Katie and I exchanged one more look, where I tried my best for a smile. We followed the girls out; they were in the middle of piling up in my car. See, Katie and I had devised a system - we would exchange days when taking the girls, considering that because of Ellie's birthday, she and Moon were starting the same grade together. (I know it's confusing, considering she's almost two years older, but it's just how it is. Mainly because Katie kept her in Pre-K one more extra year last year. Otherwise Ellie would be in first.)

We had somehow hashed it out so that I would be the first school morning. (Okay, so maybe I just agreed to it because nothing was worse than a made Katie Stoll...but still.)

The girls slammed the car doors, and I inched my way over, opening the driver's door gingerly. I was seriously about to vomit - I just knew it. But I shoved whatever was trying to inch its way up my throat back down as Katie once again gave me that glance - the one all mother's had, where they knew you were sick, but knew that your were a tough nut to crack and figure out.

I smiled again - I think I was becoming a master at this fake-smiling thing - and sat in the car. I almost slammed the door. Katie, copying my fake grin, said, "Look, you need to go to the doctor. For me? Ellie? Moon, and Percy? Please?"

I sighed, mostly in defeat. I had been sick for a while; maybe all I needed was a good anti-biotic. "Fine, fine." I started the car. Ellie waved good-bye and smashed her face up against the window, making the ASL (American Sign Language) sign for "I love you." Katie did it back, and then we were gone.

|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|

**_Moon's POV_**

I gulped. Even though Mama thought I was overly excited, I was actually overly scared. Sure, it helped that Ellis was beside me, and the fact that we had had a few laughs that morning, but still. I would be alone here - Mom couldn't just show up and kiss me on the cheek when I was scared. I couldn't talk to daddy before I took a nap anymore, let him tell me an old ancient Greek Myth story to get me to have good dreams.

For once I did feel truly alone, even with Ellie.

Mama was driving stiffly - she didn't look very stable. Was she sick? Why would she be so sick? It wasn't even winter yet, no where close to my sixth birthday.

Gosh. I didn't realize I'd be six in only a few months. Wow. That eased my mind a little, but the nervousness quickly returned. I just didn't understand it - Daddy, back when he was twelve, had enoug courage to stand up to the minotaur; and _win. _He also dealt with that stinky man he always talked about...what was his name? Smelly Gabe. That's right. He would talk about all he did to him and his mom, my Grandma Sally. He fought with Uncle Ares, the god of War, and even stood up to my uncle Zeus. That was pretty amazing.

And then Mom...she did so much. She fought without a fear in her head. She was never frightened, at least not that I could tell. She battled the Jynx, and stood up to aunt Hera. Or Queen Hera. Mom said I should just call her witch, but Daddy told her that that wasn't very polite. I tend to stay with aunt Hera more, though. It just seems to fit her.

The car stopped suddenly, and I don't know if maybe Mama hit the brakes, or if I was just surprised, but I shot forward a little. Good thing I was wearing my seatbelt...and sitting in the back seat, like I was supposed to. (Of course, sometimes Daddy would let me ride up front. He never told Mama though. It was our little secret.)

"Alright, girilies," Mom smiled unconvincingly, "time to go to school. Love you." She leaned over the edge of her seat and kissed me on the forehead. She gave Ellie a kiss, too.

"Thanks, Annabeth." Ellis said, hoping out of the left side. I stayed for a second - I didn't really want to leave.

"Come on, Moon!" Ellie shouted from outside. I gulped again, but let out a breath of acceptance. I leaned up and kissed Mama on the cheek.

"Love you, Mama."

She smiled, this time through her eyes. Maybe I was the cure to whatever was ailing her. "Love you, sweetie." She brushed some hair back from my face. "Get going, now. If you need anything, I'm just a call away. Okay?"

"Okay," I smiled softly. "You'll be here at three?" I checked for the umpteenth time.

She nodded. "Promise."

I smiled again; I didn't feel so alone now. I hoped out of the car, and made a bee-line for the huge building with Ellis. We both ran, pretending that we were in one of our parents' stories - the one where they were chased by monsters in the Labyrinth.

I really didn't know how true that might end up being.

|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|

_**Annabeth's POV**_

_**3 Hours Later **_

"Wait - what?" I screeched. I couldn't believe it - I was torn between happy, sad, and confused. But we hadn't...not since...but...and then...Oh, good Zeus.

"The test was possitive, Mrs. Jackson." the nurse said. "Dr. Samuels is testing it once more, but we're more than positive. You're pregnant."

I still couldn't believe my ears. I...it just didn't seem real. I wanted to be upset. I wanted to cry. I want to smile and laugh like it was the greatest thing in the world. But all I did was smile. I smiled so wide that my cheeks and ears hurt. It was great.

Dr. Samuels came in a little later, confirming once again what I'd already been told. I hardly heard her. Then she went over things to look for, in case of any surprise pains or hot flashes. We didn't want another case of Moon; nothing to put both me and the baby in harm's way. I doubted severly that that would happen, but I listened very carefully; super intently. I didn't want to miss anything with this one. I didn't want anything to go wrong like they had suddenly with Moon's. In fact, the way I saw it, we were both pretty lucky and bless by God to be alive. I was sure of it.

I thanked her a lot, then left quickly. I was going to make this one big - this one just had to have a great meaning. I wasn't sure how I would tell him. I wasn't sure how I would tell Moon.

God, what was I going to do?

* * *

><p><strong>Ta-da! Hope you enjoyed! ! ! Hehehe! :D :D :D :D<strong>

**~Future**


	18. Telling Everybody

**A/N: What to say...Sorry for any mistakes, I guess. And...I don't even know. I'm not coherent enough right now to have a good one of these...**

**Me: Bleh. Don't feel good. Hungry. I don't own PJO.**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV<em>**

Later that afternoon, at exactly three, I picked Hayley up. Katie had taken care of Ellie.

Moon came buzzing from the car rider line with so much excitement I thought she might burst. She tossed her bookbag in the back, and before I could even think of protesting, she had hopped up front with me, her seat belt buckled and the stern look of not-moving on her face.

I didn't argue - I was still a little dazed from earlier before. It was still like a really, really sweet dream. Of course, I should've known. Morning sickness. I really hadn't had any cravings, but the dots should've still connected. Oh well. What's been done has been done, so there was no reason questioning it now.

I started driving, even though a few of the afternoon-workers gave me crazed looks. I just smiled and continued what I was doing. "So, how was it - ?"

"Oh Zeus, Mama!" She shouted, smiling wide. "It was _ah-maze-ing! _My teacher was this really tall, really young lady, called Mrs. Burn. She couldn't've been more than twenty-six. I'm serious. As the day went on, we got to read this book called _Green Eggs and Ham. _Then we went to the library, and were introduced to the librarian Mr. Mac **(A/N: I just had to use him. He was my librarian in Elementary school, and I owe a lot to him. This is just a small gratitude to pay.)**, and he was really nice. He even let me check out my own copy of this really awesome-looking book I found." She reached back and yanked her bookbag up front, opening it to reveal a rather thick book. "Mrs. Burn said that it was way too old for me, but I told her that Mama had read books bigger to me before, so it was nothing." She showed me the book, _Charlotte's Web_, and smiled even bigger, if that was even possible.

"Then, after that we went to lunch, where I got my own really cool number. It was Daddy's birthday numbers, which I thought was a little odd, but didn't mind. At least now I could remember it." She paused. "See: 81893. I know my lunch number because it's Daddy's birthday!" Moon beamed at me, and I couldn't help but smile. "Then we took a nap. But Ellis and I didn't sleep. We talked, like I said we would. Mrs. Burn looked like she was going to get mad at us, but she just smiled and mouthed for us to whisper so the other kids could sleep. I really like her. She, after that, taught us our alphabet, and had us do a work sheet on it. Then something called a "Who Am I". Both times I signed my name in Greek. See?" Moon held up her alphabet paper, which had a bright red 100 in marker on the top.

Where the name slot was, she had written Σελήνη. "What'd she say?" I asked, quite interested now.

"She was amazed. She said that when she was little, she was able to read Greek, too, but that's where she was from. Greece. She told me that she was awestruck that I was writing in her native language. I found that quite exciting myself."

I laughed a little. "So, a good day afterall, huh?"

"Yep. Yes, ma'am." Moon was still beaming.

"Well," I started, "would it make it even better if I had a surprise for you?"

"A surprise?" She asked. Then shouted, "A _surprise! _What is it?"

I shook my head. "I can't tell you. Yet. Then it wouldn't be a surprise, now, would it?"

Her face fell a little. "Oh. Well, I guess not..."

"Oh, don't be sad." I said, putting my hand under her chin and turning it towards me. "I'll tell you when your dad gets home. This is a surprise for all of us."

"Really? It must be pretty big then." She sighed, looking through the window at the mixing colors of green and brown and yellow as Fall was setting in.

"Yeah, baby," I sighed, too. "It's pretty big."

I suddenly didn't feel too confident about this.

|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|

**_Moon's POV_**

When we got home, I was seiously wondering what this surprise was. Mama said it was huge. But I didn't see a curio cabinet anywhere in there. I didn't see a new car in the driveway, or a carousel outback. There wasn't even a new horse-stable, complete with horses, which is what I was really hoping for. (What? My grandfather is Poseidon. I really like horses, and you have to admit that would be a big surprise for all of us.)

I don't know how many times I asked Mama to tell me. Daddy had called a few minutes before we got home, and said he'd be a little late because he had a couple of meetings after school.

Mama's face had fell, but she managed a quick, tight smile as she said goodbye and she loved him. I hollered, "Love you, Daddy!" Across the room from the couch, and apparently Daddy heard it, because Mama said that he loved me, too.

So, I waited. And waited. Forever. Even _Spongebob _couldn't keep me distracted for long. So, I read for a while. _Charlotte's Web _was very interesting and all, but I just wasn't in to it. There was a surprise. And I couldn't know it until Daddy got here.

It was killing this granddaughter of Athena.

Finally, I just exploded. "Mama, please, please, please, please, _please _tell me what it is!"

She replied so calmly I felt like dying. "No, Moonlight Jackson. Not until Daddy gets here."

"But - !"

"No buts. This is important, for all of us." Mama smiled. "I promise it will be worth the wait, sweetie."

I sighed and threw myself face first on the couch. "Why can't you jus' tell meh?" my words were muffled by the couch's cushion.

"Because I - " Mama stopped halfway through her sentence. I don't even think she knew why, but then we heard the door open. About time!

"Daddy!" Shouted, running for the door. Aunt Thalia looked really surprised. Oh, no, she wasn't the surprise, was she?

"Uh, no, not 'daddy'. Just Thalia." She said.

"Thalia?" Mom asked, walking around the corner. Mama looked surprised, too. So, she wasn't the surprise. Good. "What're you doing here?"

"Break from the hunters. Lady Artemis said something big was going to happen around here, that I should come and see what it was. It's a big buzz on Olympus - Apollo even came to tell it to Artemis. And she wasn't exactly angry afterwards, which was amazing." She paused. "I mean, as you know, she's always angry after he shows up, because he's constantly flirting with us. Especially me."

"Oh," Mama said, then heard the door open again. She smiled. "Looks like you're just in time."

It was Daddy. "Daddy!" I shouted, and raced for the door. It's about time I learned the surprise.

|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|

**_Annabeth's POV_**

I took a deep breath. I really wasn't expecting Thalia - that was a real surprise to me. Almost more than the news of me being pregnant.

But, oh well. Now was the time; I had to tell them.

"Daddy, Daddy, guess what?" Hayley said, following Percy like an obediant dog to the couch.

"What?" He asked, a confused look on his face. I couldn't tell if it was just from playing or if he was really confused as to what she had in store for him.

"Mama said that she's got so huge surprise for all of us, and then aunt Thalia shown up - " she pointed at Thalia "- but before that Mama made me wait to figure out what it was. And now you're here so we can know!" I swear, sometimes the way kids reason and explain things just make you want to laugh with sheer happiness.

Percy looked to me. "What's the surprise, then, Wise Girl?" He smirked at me as Moon climbed up in his lap, and he held her close to him. That gave me confidence to say it. He would be happy - wouldn't he? And apparently it's a good buzz on Olympus, thanks to Thalia's intel.

"Okay," I sighed, smiling. "Thaila, Percy, Hayley, you know how I've been a little sick lately?" Thalia shook her head, Percy nodded, and Moon nodded as well. "Well, this morning Katie talked me in to going to the doctor. And...well..."

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Annie, quit beating around the bush. What is it?"

I glared but kept smiling as I noticed Percy's eager face. His eyes were gleaming - was he expecting something? - and Moon was about to jump from Percy's arms in anticipation. "Fine, Thals. I'm pregnant." The words didn't feel real when they flicked off my tongue. Not at all. And niether did the way Thalia jumped up in surprise, or the way Percy smiled so wide that I was sure he would explode.

It only felt real when the with-her-mouth-open Hayley went, "That's _it_?" She looked outraged. "_That's _the surprise? And here I thought I had gotten a horse, not a brother!"

Her last words kind of shocked me. "How - why do you think it's a boy, Hales?"

Moon seemed like that was the wierdest question I'd ever asked her. "What do you mean? Of course it's a boy. Why wouldn't it be?" She frowned. "I mean, I think it is at least." She walked over and, as if what she was already guessing wasn't strange enough, placed her hand on my stomach. "Hmm...yeah, it's a boy." Moon beamed up at her father after that. "Daddy, did I mention I got a 100 on my alphabet sheet?"

Moon ran off to go show him, and Percy glanced at me with a look that said he thought Moon was right.

I shook my head and smiled. "There's no way she's right. She's just off in her own little world." I smiled confidently as she came back, and got Percy distracted with her work. I couldn't shake the feeling of her being right, though, no matter how I tried.

I mean...surely it wouldn't be a boy, like she said. Right?

* * *

><p><strong>Ending it here. Now, the next chapter is going to skip a LOT of years. Not too many to not have a good story, but quite a few. <strong>

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**~Future**


	19. Baby Percival

**A/N: I forgot what I said during the last chapter, but if it said that this one was going to skip a lot of years (I think it did) then I was wrong. I'm going to do this one, a few months in to Annabeth's latest pregnancy. And _then _it skips a lot of time. I promise. ;)**

**Me: Feeling a bit better. Still a little hungry. I also watched a classic last night, and one this morning - Peter Pan and then Anastasia. Anyway, umm...today, for the disclaimer, perhaps another character of mine...Cassandra!**

**Cassie: She doesn't own PJO. Merely the plot, and the plot only. **

**Me: Thank you, and thank you Jesus that I do own the plot...*starts mumbling incoherent things***

**Cassie: To the chapter!**

**PS, Also, this chapter is sorta like a fill-me-in chapter, so sorry if it's not as long as normal. I'll try my best to make up for it. ;D**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV<strong>_

Today was it. The ultra-sound. To be honest, I had believed Hayley fully - it was going to be a boy. Of course, I never exactly said it out loud.

Moon bounced around that Friday, wearing her favorite piece of clothing - that grey dress. Her curly blonde hair descended down her shoulders, and caressed her cheeks. Her green eyes shown as she talked about what her baby brother would look like. What she would dress him up in, and how they would play Monster Vs. Demigods together. (Where she got that idea I have no idea, but it definitely didn't sound so friendly.)

"Mama?" She asked, looking at me as I sat on the couch. She twirled, causing ruffles in her dress.

"What, sweetie?" I stuck the one thing I had been craving ever since I became pregnant in my mouth - cereal. I'd swear I was turning into Demeter.

"Did you know that..." she stopped suddenly, and tilted her head as if hearing something. She shook her head, tilted it back upright and smiled at me. "Never mind." And ran off.

_What was that about? _I thought, eating some more _Honey Bunches of Oats. _

Percy, despite begging to stay home today, was at work until twelve, when we went to find out the baby's gender. He was buzzing with as much excitment as Moon. "Please let me stay? I can keep Moon busy while you decorate the - "

"No," I said, finally, smiling. "Perseus Jackson, there's no way you're getting out of work that easy." I flung the keys at him and shoved him through the door.

Hayley did the weird titlting her head thing again, then looked up to me. "Daddy says he can't believe you won't let him stay." She paused, as if hearing something else, then continued, "And then, he says that he isn't surprised, because you wouldn't be Wise Girl if you didn't." Moon smiled wide, and then pranced away.

Now she was seriously freaking me out.

"Brother is wondering when he finally gets to come out," Moon said, sitting next to me. Her head was tilted again.

"Your brother can't come for about five more months, Hales," I said, really thinking that she was just saying her "brother" for the fun of it.

She sighed. "He says he's cold. Are you cold, Mama?"

Strange thing was, is that I was. I was a little cold. _Is she reading minds? _The thought popped up suddenly.

Hayley studied my face, and nodded. "Yeah, Mommy. I am."

"You are what?" I asked cautiously.

"Reading minds. It's a lot of fun! You should try it sometime."

Is it wrong to be a little afraid of my own child? Because, at that moment, with her sweet face and golden hair cascading down her shoulders, she really looked like an angel gone wrong. **(A/N: Why do I feel like this chapter is going downhill fast...and that she [Hayley] sorta seems like Angel from Maximum Ride?)**

I was about to say something, when I glanced at the clock. It's was eleven thirty, about time for the ultrasound. Might as well leave now. I hurried out to the car, Hayley following behind me, looking as thoughtful as ever.

Maybe this day would be over soon.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Moon's POV<em>**

I think I was scaring my mom. I didn't mean to, but I was just telling her the truth. And it's not like I exactly asked to be able to read minds. It just sort of happened, when Mama found out she was having my brother. Something just started whispering in my mind, _I'm a boy, I'm a boy, tell our mom I'm a boy! _It honestly freaked me out, but as I spoke the words to Mama and Daddy, they sounded as strong and confident as ever.

Ever since then, for the last few months, I heard choice thoughts - things my daddy thought, things Mommy thought, things Brother thought. Even Ellis and Aunt Katie and Uncle Travis, and Ellis's little brother, Carter. She was two and a half, almost three, when Carter was born - just after I came along. And also her other little brother - not yet born, but soon to be. Like, in the next few days, Mama told me. What are they naming him? Connor, I believe Ellis told me, after her Uncle Connor.

I hoped in the car as Mommy eyed me suspiciously. Did I look suspicious? I hoped I didn't. We drove silently down the highway, until I cleared my throat. "Mo-Momma?" I asked.

"Yes?" She asked back.

"Can...can I listen to my CD now? Please." I added the 'please' hurriedly, in order not to look any more suspicious than I already did. At least that I thought I did.

To be honest, I wasn't even sure anymore of what I was.

"Oh, uh, yes," Mama sounded distracted. Was she thinking about Brother? I chose not to listen in on her thoughts right now; I didn't want her to be scared of me anymore.

She pressed the 'play' button on the stereo, and my CD came on. I hummed along softly to _Folsom Prison Blues, _and even started singing the tune in a quiet voice.

"_I hear the train a comin', _

_It's rollin' 'round the bend. _

_And I seen the sunshine, _

_Since I don't know when - _".

"That's really good singing, M." Mom said from up front. I felt my cheeks go really hot - she had heard me? I was hoping she hadn't, but apparently she had.

"Oh..." I paused. "I guess thanks, Mama."

"You're welcome, sweetheart."

I smiled. "So...you're not scared of me any more?" I asked softly.

Mom looked in the window, wondering why I would think that. I could tell by the look on her face. "What makes you think that, baby?" But I listened in on her thoughts. _How did she know? _

"Why were you scared, Mama?" I sighed. "I mean, I'm not that scary, am I?"

"No, sweetie, no...Mama's just...she's not thinking straight right now. But I'm not scared of you - you're my daughter. I love you." She smiled, and I could tell she meant it, but I still felt bad. She had been scared of me. I was a scary person, which didn't make me feel any better. I didn't want to be a scary person.

We rode in silence again, until we got to the doctor's office. I saw Daddy's car in parking lot, and saw his nervously smiling face as he walked over to us. He got me out of the back while Mom got out by herself. She had already told Daddy that she was off limits, because she could do it by herself.

After we walked in, got checked in, and sat in the waiting room forever, they finally called us back to the ultra-sound room. When we got back there, Mama laid on a table, and looked like she was trying to get relaxed. Daddy kept wringing his hands, and I sat on his lap.

He looked at Mama, his eyes gleaming with happiness. "This is it," he said, wrapping his arms around my waist, holding on to me as he bounced his knee up and down.

"This is it," Mama smiled, but I could see the tension in her eyes. I listened in on her thoughts. _What if Hayley's right? What if it _is _a boy? Then...then my daughter really does have special powers. _She smiled wider at the end of her thought, but I wasn't sure.

At school, I was in the special classes because they said I had a hight "IQ" than everyone else. Ellis was in that class with me, along with a couple of others that I somewhat knew. I knew that by the end of our school years we'd all be good friends, but I was still pretty nervous when it came to school - I was always worried no one else would like me except for Ellis, and for Carter, who liked to somewhat talk to me every time I went over to Ellie's house.

Sorry. I'm getting off track. But, anyway, we also used "special" as a term for weird, sometimes dumb. Was I weird and dumb?

Suddenly I felt kind of sick to my stomach. If Mama thought that...it would kill me. Literally.

I was about to tell my daddy that I needed to go to the bathroom and puke when a pretty, dark-haired nurse came in. She was wearing pink scrubs and ugly white shoes. They couldn't have liked wearing those - they looked about as comfortable as sitting on a cactus. Her face was all too beautiful, and her makeup and jewelry matched perfectly.

"Everyone all set?" She asked, and her voice kind of caught at me - it drew me in, like every word she said meant something important. A certain mist seemed to dance around her, like sparkly glitter.

Mom narrowed her eyes at the woman, and mumbled, "You look familiar..." but she just shook her head. "Must be coincidence, but, yes, we're all set."

The nurse smiled, and pulled out this thing that looked like a fancy ketchup bottle dispencer. She squeezed something out from it, and it looked like...like whale snot. Icky, icky whale snot, except it was blue.

The nurse then pulled out a wand looking thingy, like in _Sabrina the Teenage Witch _and rubbed it on Mom's growing tummy. A tiny figure appeared, and I stared at it in awe.

"What's that?" I whispered in Daddy's ear.

"That's your baby brother," Daddy whispered back. He'd agreed with me right off the bat that I was right, and it was a boy. Me and Ellie had already picked out the name, too: Audrick Percival. When they had asked why, we merely said "Because it just sounds cool and is a mixture of all of our family names."

They seemed to agree with that, but Mom still didn't believe it was a boy. She was sure that it was a girl and was going to name her Chelsea Sophia.

"Here's the head," the beautiful woman pointed with a slender, all-too perfect finger at the screen, circling an object. She zoomed out with her computer and shown the full body. Daddy was smiling wide, and Mama just looked happy.

"What's the gender?" Mama asked, looking excited.

The nurse smiled and glanced at the screen. "Congratulations, Annabeth," she said, "it's a boy."

Daddy and I cheered, while Mama just had a wistful look on her face. _So she was right, _her thoughts echoed in my mind. _My baby was right. _

The nurse finished up, and assured that everything was okay with the baby. When she started to leave, Mama stopped her. "Excuse me," she said, "but we didn't catch your name."

The beautiful woman smiled. "Just call me Aphrodite." And then she was gone in a fume of pinkish-purple smoke.

Mommy and Daddy looked at each other. "Aphrodite," they repeated, almost stunned.

"That was Aunt Aphrodite?" I asked. They nodded. I looked at Mama. "Well, no wonder she looked so familiar! Do you think she blessed Audrick?"

"Who?" She asked, pulling her shirt back down and sitting up on the table.

"Audrick," I said. "Remember? You agreed with me and Ellie that if it was a boy you and Daddy would name him Audrick Percival. Remember?"

"Oh..." she said. She looked at Daddy and mouthed, _Did we? _

Daddy nodded and mouthed, _We did. _

_Oh, _she mouthed back, and sighed, almost irritably. "Fine, Hayley," she said, smiling slightly. "We'll name him Audrick Percival."

"Yay!" I cheered, and I cheered all the way home, even as I listened to Johnny Cash once again.

Today was pretty good after all.

* * *

><p><strong>Ugh...I feel like this chapter was horrible. Was it?<strong>

**Hope you...enjoyed...?**

**~Future**


	20. Just Your Average Summer Day

A/N: Here's a warning: We're pretty much switching to all Moon's POV, sometimes Ellie's and the other kids', but mostly Moon's. I think this one will still have Annabeth, but I'm writing this before I even start the chapter. So...yeah. DICLAI-MOUR!

Me: I don't own Percy Jackson. At all. He's not mine, I swear.

Percy: *struggling in corner, tied in rope with duct tape over his mouth* *muffled screams, trying to get someone's attention*

Me:...No, I didn't kidnap him! I'm not _that _crazy...Okay, I am, but still...

Annabeth's POV

(12 1/2 years later)

Our family had grown immensly **(A/N: I totally just spelled that wrong...) **since Audrick. Well, I say immensly **(again...) **, but it truly only grew by one. Now we had the seventeen, almost eighteen year old Hayley Moonlight Jackson, fourteen year old Audrick Percival Jackson (I'm still having a hard time knowing I agreed with that name twelve years ago), and then our newest addition, Chelsea Athene Jackson, twelve, almost thirteen years old, who was born with Audrick was one and three quarters, nearly two.

That meant we now had two pre-teens and one real teen running around the house. It was Summer, and I was starting off the rather okay morning with a cup of coffee. I couldn't remember the last time that it was this peaceful in the house; no yelling, no screaming, no fighting. Just bright, warm sunlight filtering through the windows. I sighed - a happy, almost wistful sigh. Today was _perfe - _

"Give it back!" Hayley screamed from upstairs. Suddenly feet came pounding down the staircase, and Audrick burst into the room, his chest heaving, Hayley's diary in his hands. He had a slash on his up left cheek, and something that looked sort of like rope burns, as if Hayley tried to capture him that way.

"NAME FREAK!" Moon came running down the stairs after him, and he glanced at me once before taking off again, this time through the sliding glass doors to where the in-ground pool was.

"Audrick!" She screamed, walking out side, a deathly glare on her face as she marched toward him.

He held the diary over the water. "One more step and I drop it!" He said fiercely.

Moon stared in awe. "You. Wouldn't." Her teeth were gritted.

I took a sip of my coffee. This was, believe it or not, almost like entertainment, to watch these two go at each other. Until they got hurt, of course. Then it was punishment.

Good Zeus, I'm starting to sound like Percy...

"Try. Me." Audrick dangled the diary between two fingers, its greyness shinning in the early morning light.

Leave it to my kids to be early risers during the summer and late sleepers during school,

I thought irritably. My kids were one of a kind, that's for sure. Except for Chelse, of course. She was probably upstairs still dreaming of where we were heading today - Camp Half-Blood. It was a tradition on the 4th of July; we go down to camp, visit for a while with everyone, spend the night on the third (it was the third today), and then get up and have a fourth of July celebration at camp, then watch the firework afterward.

Chelsea was also the one who never faught, not like my other two.

"Drop it, Fish Head!" Hayley's voice was dangerously low, dangerously calm; it shouldn't be that calm.

Hayley Moonlight Jackson,

I thought, _don't you dare. _

She glanced back at me for a second, her sea-green eyes blazing with fury. But, she sighed just as irritably as me, and turned back to her brother. "Audrick _Percival, _please." She said, her tone now sweet.

Too sweet.

"Please what?" Audrick snapped, bringing the diary back to his chest.

"Please give me my journal back."

"Gotta catch me first," he replied mockingly, and, taking a step back, sprinted across the yard. He was on his way to Central Park; we didn't live too far from it.

That broke the last straw with Hayley. She raised her hands up high in the air, causing all the water in the pool to cascade of her head.

Moon, no.

I thought.

Too late.

She slung her arms forward, causing the water to do the same. She wrapped both of the currents around her brother, making sure he dropped the journal as she yanked him back and flung him into the pool with a sickening _SPLOOSH! _

Hayley smiled smugly in victory while I waited for Audrick to come back up. He couldn't breathe underwater or control it like Hayley and Chelsea could - he only got the brains.

He popped out, coughing and splurging water from his mouth. He shot a glare at Hayley and called out, "Foul! Technical foul! She can't do that!"

"Oh, but I can," and, smirking, she sauntered over to where her diary was, scooped it up in her hands, and walked back into the house, making sure that a wave crashed over Audrick's head as she walked past.

"Moon..." I said threatingly, looking at her.

"Ma'am...?" She said, in the same, too-polite voice to be hers.

"Stop picking on him." I said, staring up at her. Sitting down, she topped me like a Lastrygoin giant **(spelled that wrong, too...) **, but standing up, she only seemed like a really tall tree. I had topped off a 5'8, while Percy kept growing, becoming 6'5. Hayley had also inherited his length - she was tall, about 6'2, her hair growing longer it seemed everyday.

She sighed. "I'm sorry, Momma. But, I mean, you've met my brother, right? It's...it's like being related to a demon!"

"Hayley..."

"Sorry," she mumbled again. She glanced up at me. "Groundment?"

"Indefinitely."

"Oh."

"Yep."

"I'm sorry?" She tried.

"Not going to work this time."

"Please?"

"No."

"But - ?"

"No buts."

"Fine," she sighed.

"Good," I said, and sipped on my coffee again. "Are you packed?"

"For camp?" Moon thought about it for a second. "Yes, ma'am."

"Perfect. Now, can you go get Chelsea please? Sometimes I'd swear that girl was a daughter of Hypnos." **(He is the god of sleep, right? Sheesh, I hope so...) **

"Yes, ma'am." Hayley smiled softly, then climbed the stairs on the balls of her feet. I stood slowly and walked outside to get my soaking wet son out of the pool. Welcome to your average summer vacation in the Jackson household.

**Ugh. Short chapter, I know, but I'm saving the camp visit and everything for a little later on, next chapter and stuff.**

**Hope you enjoyed this very tiny update.**

**~Future**


	21. As Fast as Lightning

**A/N: Aww...you guys! You make me blush and want to cry! I was SURE I had lost ya'll with that chapter...guess not...I guess I just wanna say THANK YOU! :D**

**Percy: *manages to get the duct tape off of his mouth* Help! She's holding me hosta - **

**Me: Shhh! *stuffs a sock in his mouth* I _don't _own PJO, Percy Jackson and all that. Do I? *eyes Percy***

**Percy: *sighs and shakes his head***

**Me: Good. :)**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Moon's POV<em>**

It's not that I hated my brother. We just didn't get along well. And, I know, Ellie and I came up with his name, we (I, more like) shouldn't call him "Name Freak".

But it just fits him so well.

I walked up the stairs as Mom told me to, and went straight to my sister's room. Chelsea slept like a rock, always, except for during school.

Sometimes I just can't understand her.

Her door, as usual, was closed and locked. I banged on the door with my fist. "Athene!" I shouted. "Get up! We're about to leave for camp!"

"Go 'way!" She slurred, throwing something that sounded like a pillow weakly at the door. I sighed and rolled my eyes.

"Come on, Chelse! Don't you miss the canoe rides, staying in Dad's cabin with me while we got rid of Audrick for a while? You know how much we enjoy _that_!" Okay, so, once again bagging on my brother. I can't help it - it's like a natural way of life. Weird, I know, but you'll get used to it.

"I l'ke Aud...ri...ee..." she muttered, and I heard the shuffling of feet across the carpet floor. The door swung open suddenly, and my sister glared at me. "Now, go 'way!" You could see that she was practically still asleep.

I had one other trick up my sleeve, but it was a little drastic. Dad had told me of one time, back when they were Audrick's age, that they went in search of Zeus's lightning bolt. They got stuck in some place called the Lotus Casino, where they stayed trapped for a few days. Mom didn't want to leave, and he knew that she was afraid of spiders.

When he told that story, Chelsea got a wild look in her eyes and gulped, "Spi-spi-spider? Where? !" And ducked up underneath the bed.

I took a deep breath. This might get real ugly real fast. I grabbed her by the shoulder like Dad had done such a long time ago, leaned in close and whispered. "Spiders. Huge, hairy spiders."

It took all of one milli-second for it to register in her mind. "WHERE?" She shrieked, scratching at her head and pulling some of her hair out. "Get it out, get it out!" And she bolted down the stairs.

When Mom got a hold of her, she called up the stairs, "Hayley!"

"What?" I called back. "You asked me to get her up!"

"I didn't want you to scare her to death!"

"Sorry!" I walked to my bedroom and took my sut case off my bed, putting it on the ground. We always packed like we were moving to camp, even though we'd only be there for a week. That's just how we were.

I glanced around my room - I always did, for fear I might not ever see it again. I guess that it was just a little thing all somewhat-demigods felt; like this day could be your last.

I saw my photo of Mom and Dad, taken the day of their wedding. They were dancing, Mom's dress torn in all sorts of different ways as if claws had been raked through it. Dirt and blood were also sprinkled on the hems, but they didn't seem to notice. They were too lost in each other's eyes, the thought that they were sharing telepathically. Not like I could do, thought, but the same concept. I once again felt that little ping in my chest, wondering if I'd ever be that deeply in love with someone, where we could dance and be the only one's there, even though we are surrounded by people.

It seemed like a fairytale dream that would never come true.

Another was the one where they were standing on the beach. Mom's arms were crossed across her chest. She was leaned back, her grey eyes intense and glaring, and her mouth cocked in such a way that you know that she was angry about something. Dad's eyes were in mid-roll, her arms crossed, too, his face in an annoyed glance. They were arguing about something, that was evident. I liked looking at this one a lot; it always seemed to bring a smile to my face. For some reason, I loved it when they faught. It wasn't like normal fighting, like me and Audrick did; it was pure, and fun, and about stupid things that normal people never thought about. And you could always see the love in their face. You could always see it in their eyes.

I smiled, then looked on to the last one I had on my night stand. Mom and Daddy sat on the pier at camp. Daddy was leaned back on his hands, and Mom had her legs dangling off the side of the pier. She was dropping stones in the water, smiling softly as the ripples spread around below her feet. Dad would then use his Poseidon powers to raise the stone back up, as dry as a whistle, so Mom could throw them back. Dad's eyes seemed lost as he gazed, somewhat at Mom, somewhat at the water. It was as if they were the only two people on the universe. A glorious sunset was fading behind them, casting shades of purple, blue, orange pink across their faces and the world around them. **(A/N: I sort of stole ((borrowed)) this idea from Burdge-bug's picture she drew of these two, description and everything. All of it belongs to her, I just incorporated it into a straight in-story idea.)**

It was perfect.

I shook my head, trying to get all of those stories out of my head. I had to pay attention to the matter at hand - getting packed for a week at Camp Half-Blood.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Audrick's POV<strong>_

Sisters. Cruel, evil beings. This is what my definition of Hayley is.

Sometimes I swear she did it just so I would die. Yes, before you ask, my sister was that crazy.

I stood in the kitchen, a towel wrapped around my shoulders as I tried to shake the freezing-my-butt-off feeling away. I didn't get any cool powers like Hales or Chelsea; I was stuck being "too smart for words", as so quoted by my teacher. So, I had to stand there until Mom brought me some fresh clothes to change into.

"Thanks," I said, taking them from her. She stared at me for a second, her eyes in extreme thought.

"I'm sorry for what your sister did," she said at last.

I just shrugged. "Doesn't matter. I probably shouldn't've stole her diary. I'm becoming as bad as Connor Stoll Jr." When I said that, Mom laughed and gave me a half-way hug.

"At least you won't have to deal with her for a while. It'll just be me and you, Uncle Malcolm and Aunt Stacey in the Athena cabin. Along with the other campers, of course. And your sisters'll both be with your dad for a whole week. This will be fun, I guarentee it."

"I guess you're right," I smiled as I used the towel to clean some water out of my ears.

She smirked. "Always," and then she left so I could run upstairs and finish changing. I dashed up the stairs, all that Mom said giving me new-found energy. I wasn't like my sisters at all, that was for sure. I had an atheltic build, was skinny and a little tan. Sandy-blonde hair and intense grey eyes made me seem like my Uncle Malcolm (I've been asked more than once if I was his son/cousin/brother). I had light freckles on my cheeks and nose, kind of like Chelsea.

She was the only one who got Dad's black hair, though.

After my door was closed and locked, I took off my sopping wet brick-dust colored shirt and tossed it in my hamper. I took the shorts I'd been wearing off, followed by my socks, shoes, and other necessary clothing items, and tossed them in, too. I re-changed into a pair of dark blue-jeans and a black short-sleeved muscle shirt. I finished putting on my socks and shoes, then put the towel in the hamper as well.

I hadn't noticed until I walked straight into her that Hayley was standing in my doorway with the door wide open.

"Hey!" She said. "Watch where you're walking, would you?" Hayley sighed and shook her head. "Anyway, Mom wants you to hurry up and get your suit case downstairs. Daddy'll be back in about twenty minutes." Then she glanced over at my hamper and shook her head again. "Zeus, you're organized for a boy." Then she sauntered away down the stairs.

"Better than being an unorganized twit," I mumbled, throwing my huge gym bag on my bed. I never really carried a suit case on long trips, just this over-sized duffel bag. It was sort of like my good luck charm, I guess you could say.

I opened my top drawer, which even I would have to admit was overly organized, and took out some already folded clothes.

_So what if I'm a little...organized? _I thought. _Geez. Stupid sisters._

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chelsea's POV<em>**

After I got done freaking out about my sister saying there was a spider in my hair, Mom sent me upstairs to pack. It was always some huge thing when it came to going to camp; Mom was always close to ripping her hair out, Dad tried to calm her down with cheesy jokes, and I was stuck just sitting there in the middle of Audrick and Hayley arguing.

That's what life was like as the youngest. You were never seen or thought of, just always there. I practically had to battle for attention, so even though I knew that Hayley hadn't said that the spider was in my hair, it sure was one way to go and see Mom without having a true, set-in-stone reason.

I grabbed my light-blue and teal mixture suit case and put it on my bed. I piled a few strand pieces of clothes I had laying around (I wasn't exactly the cleanest) in it, and then grabbed my laptop and laptop charger. Even as a girl, I practically lived on it. If I wasn't on my laptop, playing some game or on the latest social network, I was outside taking pictures.

Normally, I'd climb up in a high tree with my camera, and take pictures of the humming birds and yellow butterflies that buzzed about. Sometimes I'd stay out there all day, especially during the summer. Sometimes it would annoy Mom, it being around three in the morning and I'm still out taking pictures of the lightning bugs and nocturnal animals, like my namesakes animal, the owl, symbol of the wise.

"Chelsea Athene Jackson!" Mom would holler, jarring me out of my photo-taking trance.

"Mother Annabeth Chase Jackson!" I would shout back, smirking invoulentarily. She would smile slightly and roll her eyes, staring up at me with an almost annoyed glance. My legs were crossed over the edges of the highest tree branch, as if I was sitting on a saddle.

"Chelsea," she'd start, "it's three in the morning!"

"Oh," I would say, and shake my head softly. "Sorry."

"No problem." Then she'd grin ear from ear as I dropped to the ground expertly, landning in a twist on my feet. And then we'd run inside. She'd send me upstairs to my room, and she'd go to hers, falling asleep instantly without a word said from the woken-up dad.

Anyway, I'm getting off subject. Once I put my charger in the side pouch of the bag, and zipped up the clothes-holding part, I flipped my laptop open and turned it on. It opened up to my favorite addiction site, Tumblr. I put everything and all things funny on there.

But that wasn't what I was here for. I went to the search engine bar I had downloaded into the webpage, and typed in something I found pretty useful: _How to fit in? _There's something I've never told anyone; it's something that not even my most disired needs know.

I wasn't known for having a lot of attention. Even as the baby in the family, it was always about Audrie's latest amazing 175 on his math test, and his 153 average, or Hayley's latest timing on her swim score, or the new volleyball game coming up and how she was picked to be all-time server, or what Ellie said this and Carter said that, and Connor said something completely different.

Not to mention that I didn't fit in. Anywhere. I was always either too loud or too quiet; I didn't even have a best friend. If I didn't understand something, I was shuned by my way smarter classmates. If I missed that volleyball in gym, I was scowled at, and asked, "Are you _sure _you're Moonlight Jackson's sister?" Even the coaches held their noses high because Audrick and Hales were great in gym, and I wasn't.

I was wierd, too. Most of my classmates were cursing and hitting each other, and making everything sound perverted. And all I would do was finger my locket - which was in the shape of a sea-shell. My grandfather, Poseidon, gave it to me - and read a long book, like _Gone with the Wind _or _Grapes of Wrath. _One time I even read _Great Expectations, _which was a highly excellent book.

Even at Camp Half-Blood I was assured that I was weird. Apollo children made fun of me because I couldn't notch an arrow. Aphrodites always sniggered because I had "Awful hair" and that I would "Never get a boyfriend in these hand-me-down clothes". I didn't even attempt to be like my mom's cabin; I was too afraid of feeling completely dumb. Dionysus kids weren't much better, nor were Ares'.

I was accepted in one place at camp, though; the forgery. Hephaestus' children didn't seem to mind me. I never seemed to get on _thier _nerves. They always liked the things I created. They were the only ones.

I must've gotten lost in thought, because before I realized that I'd read through the whole "normalcy" paragraph, I was being yelled at down the stairs. "We've gotta go, Seashell!" my dad shouted up the stairs.

I smiled wide when I heard that. I slammed my laptop shut, threw my carry-on bag over my shoulder, and pulled my suit case behind me.

I was gone as fast as lightning.

* * *

><p><strong>This will be my last update for...a while, to say the least. I'm participating in NaNoWriMo this year (the National Novel Writing Month) and it last from Tomorrow (November 1st) until the 30th (or my Birthday!) <strong>

**Anyway, I hope this is enough to keep your interest. See you in a while. :)**

**~Future**

**PS, Wait, I lie. If I can squeeze it in, I may update. Sometimes. Just until the 30th, though. Then we're back in buisness. :)**


	22. Welcome to Camp Half Blood

**A/N: Hey, guys...Long time no see, huh? I think I've almost forgotten how to do this, come to think of it. So, if it's a little OOC, my apologies. **

**Hope you enjoy!**

**~Future**

**Disclaimer: I in no way, form, or fashion own PJO. I do, however, own Moon, Percival, Ellie, Chelsea, and any others who do not belong in the original stories. I also do not own any reference to the movie _Steel Magnolias_, which I recommend all to see. (The quotes will be italisized) :)**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Moon's POV:<em>**

The smell of Camp Half-Blood has always been comforting to me. I never had to be anything that I wasn't here; I was accepted.

I couldn't say much more for Chelsea, though.

I was bouncing in my seat the whole drive there, and was nearly about to explode as Dad pulled up to the giant Half-Blood Hill. I wasted no time as the car pulled to a haulting stop. I hadn't seen Ellie in nearly two weeks; I was becoming home sick for my best friend, who was more than likely here. I ran to the back of the car and pulled out my suit case, then took off up the hill, leaving the others in the dust.

I reached the top of the hill, and gazed down at the glorious camp grounds. My eyes gazed across the strawberry fields, the Big House, the armory, and the cabins. My father's was the most dazling to me, with low-set ceilings made of coral.

Granddad surely had a taste for building things.

Grasping the handle, I dashed up the hill and crossed the border without a second thought. I immediately saw Ellie, Carter, Connor and my friend, Olivia, waving me down like there was no tomorrow. I hurriedly made my way over to them, and Ellis crushed me in a hug. "It's about time you got here!" she shouted, elbowing Carter. "My brother's been - "

"Worried," Carter said suddenly. "I thought maybe you weren't coming this year. I shoul've known better; you guys come every year." Did I see his cheeks go red?

I tried not to think about it. "You can stop worrying, then," I smiled, draping my arm across Ellie's shoulders. "Come on, let's get unpacked; I've got a lot of work to do." Ellie laughed cheerfully and helped me lug my suit case to the Poseidon cabin. The moment I walked in, the smell of sea salt engulfed me, and I sighed, placing my suit case on mine and Dad's bunk. Chelsea always slept on the bunk across from ours.

"How's your summer been so far?" Ellie asked, taking out my pictures and placing them on Dad's bedside table. I never ceased to bring my pictures.

"Boring!" I said, putting my clothes in one of the dresser drawers. "The biggest entertainment I've had so far was this morning when I tossed Name Freak in the pool."

"Why'd you do that?" Ellie has always had a particular liking to my brother, although we did joke around about him.

"He stole my dia - journal. Tried to drop it in the water. I couldn't have that. So I just sort of...grabbed him with the water and...put him in the pool..."

"Why couldn't you just let him drop it in the water and then use your fancy-smancy water powers to dry it up?"

"Well I - " but she had a point. I really don't know why I did what I did; the thought had never run through my mind. "Um, anyway," I said, glancing over my shoulder as Dad came in. He left us to doing what we do, putting some of his own stuff back up and smiling when he saw the pictures.

"Let's go check on Audrick," I said, grabbing Ellis by the wrist and yanking her out of the cabin. We walked in silence for a few moments, examining the grass and things surrounding us.

"I'm sorry," she said finally. I shook my head, stuffing my hands in my pockets.

"No need to be. You were right. I was wrong. It's not an uncommon thing, Ellis." I grinned slightly, nudging her with my shoulder. Anyone who got near us could tell there was an awkward silence going on; the tension around us was uncanny.

Ellie must've noticed, because not long after did she elbow me, pushing me a little away from her. I grinned, and did the same thing back, until we were practically shoving each other. Our laughter was contagious to those around us, whether they be demigods our age or even some quarter bloods.

"Forgiven?" I asked, out of breath, but still laughing slightly. Ellie nodded.

"I can never stay mad at you. _You know I love you more than my luggage._"

"Haha," I said, "and _you worship the quick sand I walk on._"

"Always." Ellie smiled as a loud horn blew in the distance. We glanced at each other once, and in unison said, "Dinner."

We raced to the pavilion.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Audrick's POV:<strong>_

Everything was neat and orderly in mine and Mom's drawer. I stood up from my bent position and popped my back so that all tension was released. I felt so normal here, surrounded by other brainiacs like Uncle Malcolm, Aunt Stacey and my cousins Minerva and Ally.

We hadn't been at camp for an hour and already I felt like we were at home.

"Audrie!" Minerva attacked me from behind, almost knocking me to the ground.

"Hey, Minnie," I said, laughing. Minnie was just as tall as I was. She had dirty blonde hair and blue, misty eyes. She was my age, as well as her twin Ally.

"Audrick!" shouted Ally, almost coming at me like a rocket. She stopped just short, and instead gave me a bone crushing hug. She possessed grey eyes, dark, curly hair, and lots of freckles. She also wore thick-rimmed, black glasses. Like all of us, she had that special athletic build and natural tan.

"Good...to see you...too." I gasped out, trying to smile. "Ally...my...lungs...are...collapsing!"

"Oops," she said, letting me go. "Sorry."

"No problem." I put on my best smile and gave her a less strengthened hug back.

"What've you been up to, Audrie?" asked Minerva, jumping with ease into the bunk above mine. She dangled her legs, swining them back and forth.

"Reading, school. You?"

"Same. Although me and my sister here had a recent competition."

"What about?"

"Running through the woods," she said, smiling, jumping back down to the floor and grasping my shoulders. "As in the _Camp Half-Blood_ woods. With monsters and all that still running around."

"Oh," was all I could manage.

"And we were hoping," Ally continued, bouncing on the balls of her feet, "that our favorite cousin would come and join us."

"Why me?" I asked.

"Because Hayley would never be up to it, and Chelsea would rather spend time with her laptop fantasizing over actors."

"Well...I don't know..."

"Please!" Minnie chirped. "It'll be fun. We'll sneak out after everyone else is asleep. Okay?"

I didn't know what to say. I guess that in hiens-sight **(sp?)** I should've told them no, should've really considered what they were asking. But it's how they were asking it; Minnie with her wide, intimidating eyes, and Ally, her features sprawled into an almost puppy-like look.

"Oh...okay," I said finally, smiling. "Tonight when everyone's asleep."

"Meet us at the armory," Ally said. "We need to prepare just in case."

That was my warning sign. I ignored it, of course, and instead went back to unpacking my novels and sticking them under my pillow. A few minutes later, the conch horn rang across Camp Half-Blood, and we all filed out of the Athena cabin.

My mother was at the head of the line. She looked nervous, almost uncertain about something as she led us out. I tried not to think about it.

Hayley had to get her mind reading powers from somewhere, right?

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chelsea's POV:<strong>_

I waited until everyone was at dinner except for Dad before I started unpacking. I wanted to be alone with just him, even if for just a few minutes.

"You okay?" he finally asked, sitting down on the edge of my bunk.

"Yeah," I answered, turning my head slightly.

"You're lying." Dad said, patting the spot on the bed next to him. I sat down without even thinking about it, my head still hung low. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"Chelsea Athene." his voice wasn't stern or angry; it was calm, quiet, I would almost say supiscious. "Look at me," he said softly, grasping my chin slightly and lifting my head up to where I would have to look at him. "What happened?"

"Nothing," I insisted. "I just...it's nothing. Can we go eat now?" I started to get up, but he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back down.

"You think I can't tell your lying. Your mother thought the same thing when she was Hayley's age." he laughed at the thought of this, as if him being that young was a memory greater than anything else. "In fact, I think she handled it the same way as well. She would fake that smile you have - " I felt my mouth twinge when he said that. I was smiling; fakely, of course, " - and her dimples would show. Her eyes, however, they would get even more cloudy; like going from a peaceful grey to a raging storm. I remember that I could practically see the gears turning in her head as she tried to sort out her emotions. Annabeth's never been good with letting go of her emotions.

"She'd make the same faces, the same excuses, and I learnt quickly that she was telling a lie. I had a special way of getting it out of her, too."

"How's that?" I felt my mouth say.

"I'd tell her that I was like a tree; that I would sit still and listen to whatever she had to say, and if she wanted me to, that I wouldn't speak a word about it. I told her that she could tell me anything. I mean it for, you, too. Now, tell me," he smiled and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, "what's going on?"

It was at that moment that I couldn't keep it in any longer. I hadn't told anyone about my dreams I'd been having; about the people at school. I felt like right then would be the perfect time to get it off my chest. _My daddy is a tree, _I told myself. _My daddy is a tree. He won't say anything if I ask him not to, not even to Mom. I can trust him. He is a tree._

"You have to promise you won't tell Mom," I said quietly, so quiet he actually had to lean closer to hear.

"I promise." were the two words he said. And then I jumped into my story.

"It always starts out the same. I'm always running in a field; a dark, solemn field..."

_Flashback. _

_I can feel the tingles crawling up my back before I even feel the wind blow. The sky is cloudy, with an orange-yellow tint to it. The grass around me is dead, and moves in a silent rhythum to the wind. I hear the caw of crows, the scratching of shuffling feet across the dry grass...and laughter. _

_At first it's light. It's free. But then it turns sinsiter and cold. Goosebumps pirckle on my skin, and chills run down my spine. The figure is dark, ghostly; tall, and blonde. _

_Its my sister. _

_"Hayley?" I ask, trying to step back; but I can't move. I'm stuck there, as if my feet are stuck to the ground. She cackles again, and her eyes are no longer green - they're red. A deep, dark red that just spells evil. "Hayley!" I scream as she comes closer, her pencil-sword raised. "Please!" I find tears streaming down my cheeks as I look at the glint in her eyes. It has no mercy; it shows no shame. It's like she's being controlled by someone or something, something we've never seen before. _

_It's frightening. _

_She pokes the tip of the sword to my chin, pushing it in until a feel it stab me just a bit. A wet subtance trickles down and hits the grass below me. I see red tinted on her sword. She twists it slightly so that the tip of the blade cuts a gash across my cheek. The metallic taste of blood leaks into my mouth. Next, she slams the sword down, and a searing pain races through my arm. The next thing I know is that I'm floating backwards; she hit me in the chest with the butt of her sword, knocking all of the air out of me. _

_"H-Hayley..." I wheeze. "P-please..." I raise my shaky hand up in an attempt to protect myself. _

_"You all hate me..." she mumbles, her eyes lost in a trance. "Everyone hates me."_

_"That's not true!" I scream. "Everyone loves you!" I gasp in air. "I love you!"_

_She seems startled. Her eyes change back to green for a mere moment. _

_And then that moment ends. "You're a liar, just like the rest!" it's only then I see the red splattered across her pink top and white skirt. She's already killed everyone else; she just had to get to me. "You're a liar..." her voice sounds small and broken as she raises her sword. Our eyes clash for just a second and then she swings down and an inexcapable pain spreads through my chest, and I cry out. _

_They say that when you face death, your whole life flashes before your eyes. I can't honestly say that that's true. _

_I can't deny it, either. _

* * *

><p>Once I finished, Dad just stared at me. In the few minutes that had passed, he'd leaned agains the head board and wrapped me in both of his arms like I was three again. His face held a look of shock, and a look of dread. It was like he had heard that all before, and it only now got more in depth.<p>

I took a shaky breath. "And...and I've been having this dream ever since December, on and off. As we can see, I've already got it memorized."

"I see," Dad said after a pause. Then he shook his head and smiled. "It'll all be fine, Chelse. C'mon, Sea Shell. Dinner must be half over."

I couldn't help but laugh. Dad stood up and I followed him.

"Race you to the pavillion?" I asked, grinning. He smiled and nodded.

We raced like we were two little kids, and I won. I would have to tell him later about the kids at school and all that they'd said about me.

I couldn't think about it right then, however. For dinner we had my favorite, pepperoni pizza and blue Cherry Coke. That was a small thing I had inherited from Dad.

But still I wondered as we sat down by my sister, what did that dream mean? What was its purpose? Was my sister really going to be possessed by some other force and kill everyone in our family?

I didn't know, and to be honest, I'm not sure that I wanted to find out.

* * *

><p><strong>DONE! I hope it's good for a come-back chapter. I also hope you guys aren't mad at me. It's been almost two months since I updated. *le sigh*<strong>

**Love you guys, hope you enjoyed!**

**~Future**


	23. Here Comes The End

**_Percy's POV:_**

In heingsight, I guess I shouldn't have promised Chelsea that I wouldn't tell Annabeth. But that nightmare was haunting me, and it wasn't even mine. Annabeth had mentioned having a fear like that once...some kind of dream she had in the hospital.

After I gave some of my food as an offering to the gods, I went and sat by Annabeth, who was laughing merrily with everyone else in her cabin. "Hey," she said, smiling, and giving me a peck on the lips.

"Eew," Ally, Malcolm's daughter, made a face.

"Oh, lighten up sis," Minnie said, elbowing her. "They're just showing a little love and affection, something you've yet to master - and look! Uncle Percy's blushing." I felt the heat rise even more to my cheeks.

Zeus, I was acting like a seventeen year old.

I tried changing the subject. "Annabeth." She looked at me, her face turning stone-cold serious. "We need to talk."

She nodded, stood up with a smile and said, "Be right back, guys." We walked off of the pavillion slowly, and then began running into the forest so that no one could follow us. When we finally made it to where we thought we were safe, I found myself having to catch my breath. Annabeth had to catch hers, too.

Man, we were getting old.

"So...what is this...a...about?" she panted, her hands on her knees. I wanted to smile at the sight, but kept my mouth in a tight line.

"It's about Chelsea."

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV:<em>**

My mouth twisted angrily as I thought about that night so long ago when I had had a dream similar to that. Guilt once again consumed me, and I found my mouth speaking before I could think it through.

"I've had that dream before."

"What?" Percy seemed dubiously unaware, so I went on to explain the dream in the hospital. At parts he would nod like he understood, and one time he muttered, "No," all quiet like.

"So," he said when I was finished, "do we have any idea just _who _this voice-person-thingy is?"

"Not a clue," I answered, picking at the grass under me. "But whoever it is, we have to keep Hayley as far away from it as possible. We need to constantly have her in our sight. Got it?"

Percy nodded. His face was a little pale and a grim look decorated his eyes. "Okay. I get it. Do we just...just wait it out and see what happens?"

"That's all we can do, sweetie." I looked into his eyes and our lips collided as if we were sixteen again. "It'll all be okay," I whispered on his lips. "I promise."

* * *

><p><strong><em>Moon's POV:<em>**

_This is not as fun as it used to be, _I thought, listening as everyone else was singing some song Cousin Apollo wrote himself. The singing at Camp Half-Blood used to be the coolest thing in the world to Ellis and I - but now it was almost boring.

I sang along anyway, though.

And I felt weird. Something felt off on the inside of me; in my brain, more to say. I just didn't feel...normal. Sure, I smile and laughed, acted like everything was fine. But I didn't feel fine. I felt like something was calling to me, begging me to come and find it, trying to find its way inside of me. It was a scary feeling, but it didn't seem to be very bad. Whatever it was felt cold to me.

_Come. _A voice other than those of the singing demi/quartergods rang out next to me. I glanced around casually to see if anyone else had heard it, but no one had made a move.

_The forest. Come. _

Chiron told everyone that the songs were over and to head off to bed.

_Come, quickly. I am waiting. _

Was it a nymph? No, that didn't make sense. I couldn't hear a nymph from there.

Glancing at a few younger recruits Chiron added, "Curfew is at _eleven. _The cleaner Harpies will be scouting about the grounds and as you all should know, we don't have to keep you safe over night." He turned and made his way back to the big house, and everyone parted, Ellie coming towards me. But my feet were heading in a different direction; to the woods.

_Good girl,_ the voice, which was sickly sweet and harmonic beckoned me. _Come. I will not hurt you. Do not be afraid of me. I've always loved you. _

Hatred entered my mind. I thought about how I was practically forgotten when Audrick was born, and how even more so after Chelsea. I had to be bad in order to get Mom's attention.

_That's it, child. Almost there. Don't you remember when you were denied that used car but your brother managed to persuade them to give him a 500 dollar telescope? _

It was only a four hundred dollar car, but still he got their money. It was unfair.

_And what about your mother? She was afraid of you; none of them ever loved you, not even your best friend. I am the only one who has ever loved you, my child. Let me in. I will warm that cold spirit; I will give you what you deserve._

I'd never gotten what I'd deserved. At least I didn't feel like it. The coldness and hatred I had spread into my heart, where they seized me without relent. It was then that I realized what I had done. If only my rocket-scientist brother had been there to stop me.

_Excellent! _the voice cackled. _I shall have Olympus yet! And now my pawn has been set in place. _

Its form insued in me, took over my body, and as it burned like all get out, everything in my world went black and my body fell to a twitching mass on the ground.

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm...Good or bad update? I'm trying to give it a more climatic feel that it would've contained if I'd gone on like I've been doing. <strong>

**So, who's "the voice"? Any ideas? And no, its not Kronos. ;)**

**~Future**


	24. Who Are You? Filler Chapter

**_Moon's POV:_**

To be honest, I should've seen it coming. Then again, how could I? It's not everyday someone steals your body to take over Olympus.

Oh, wait.

I felt like I was in a re-run of my parents' adventures, except this time I was Luke. Although, I didn't know if he could see like I could. Everything around me was recognizable; I saw the strawberry fields, the forest around me, I even saw Bunker 9 behind me. I knew my name, I knew my age, I knew my family and friends. All of it made sense.

It was wrong. So, so wrong. My mind swirled, as if a grey mist sprouted through it, sending a pain all throughout my body.

_Don't fight! _the voice yelled angrily at me. _It's almost complete. _

I wondered how on Earth I was fighting. I wouldn't be able to stop it, I was aware of that. I was incapable of doing anything but standing there, my body on fire, feeling as if a hundred h-hounds were digging into my flesh. "What's...happening?" was all I could muster.

_All will become clear in due time, little miss. Ah, there we are now. How do you feel? _

How do I feel? I wanted to yell at it. Truth was, though, it didn't feel...awful. It tickled a little now on the inside, and on the outside I felt perfectly normal. I would've sworn the fog in my mind was starting to clear.

No, no no no. Some kind of drug, seduction, something it had to be doing to me!

"Who...are...you?" my voice was still hoarse and my mouth slow moving.

"That in due time too, love," the voice spoke through me, sounding exactly like me. My conciousness was pushed to the side, where I was a groggy imput in the background, much like a muted television. The voice moved my hands in front of my face and smiled, flexing my fingers. "It's perfect! Oh, Hayley Jackson, they knew about you. They knew you would be the one to cause the next downfall. They were right! And this atheletic body will definitely come in handy! Thank you, Percy and Annabeth." Its, I know realized a hers, voice slithered out, twirling around us like a snake.

"My perfection, finally accomplished! Kronos and Gaea would be so proud." She cackled, and then, in an instant, I was no longer aware of my surroundings as my mind fell into a coma-like sleep I was sure I'd never awake from.

And to think I would rather be grounded than this.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Annabeth's POV:<strong>_

"Hayley! Hayley Moonlight Jackson!" I waved my flashlight back and forth among the trees. I'd asked Chiron to call the Harpies off, to which he didn't object, and instead came with me.

"What was that?" Percy was referring to the shuffling noise somewhere to our right.

"Hales?"

The thing coughed and stumbled out, nearly tripping in the intertwining leaves and roots. It had blonde hair, green eyes. Hayley.

I smiled and bitter relief ran through me. Dashing next to her, I threw down the flashlight and looked her dead in the eyes. "Hayley what on Olympus were you thinking?" I didn't shout. I wanted to. "Going out into the woods at night? You had us scared to death! I'm so glad you're okay." I hugged her, and her shoulders tensed up. No hug back? No snappy comment? No nervous, please forgive me smile and explination?

Where was my Hayley?

For a moment I considered what had happened in the last five ours. It didn't last long. I didn't want to think of anyone of anything taking over my daughter. She was fine. She was normal. Tired. That was it. She was tired and didn't know how to deal with all the noise and hugs and are you okays and yelling and such. Yeah. Just needed some sleep, that was all.

I wiped my nose and pulled back, smiling soflty at her. She returned the gesture numbly. Wrapping my arm around her shoulders, I nodded to everyone. "Good night. Thank you for helping me find her. You're all dismissed." Taking charge like I usually did, I pushed past the crowd and Percy said goodnight to everyone.

"I'll take her with me," Percy said was we neared the cabins.

I shook my head. "I think not. I don't want Chelsea to have another night mare. I'll take her with me in the Athena cabin. Love you." I kissed him on the cheek when Hayley finally said something.

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here," she said, her voice lacking much emotion, her words slower than any I'd ever heard before, even in the country. Before I could say anything else, she looked at me, "Not that I wouldn't mind staying in the Athena cabin. I'm awfully tired, Mother, as you said."

I never said that out loud, at least I thought I didn't.

"Okay, then..."

"Goodnight, father," Hayley bidded good-bye to Percy and led herself the rest of the way there.

"Goodnight?" he asked, nearly timidly.

I smiled, or tried my best to. "Go on and check on Chelse. Audrick's asleep, and I'm sure Hayley'll be better in the morning." I kissed him again, this time on his lips, and waved him goodnight as I went to the cabin, a sinking feeling in my chest.

I wouldn't sleep the rest of the night.

* * *

><p><em>I don't own PJO, promise. :)<em>

_WHO IS IT? Any ideas? :D_

_~Future_


	25. Not a Chapter But a Chapter

**_Moon's POV: _**

Even through the grogginess I could see what was going on while I wasn't in control of my body.

...That has to be the weirdest sentence I've ever seen...

But never mind that. I saw her walking, stumbling in the trees, then the warm face of my mother. She looked so concerned - close to tears, almost. My heart broke then, no matter how numb my conscious felt. I had to be the worse daughter ever. A part of me wanted to reach out and touch her, let her know that this wasn't me. Another part wanted to stay in my darkness though. Like any woman, I wasn't one to admit I was wrong, and that bit of me was stronger than the other, not that I was positive I could move in any form or fashion.

Sighing, or doing what I guess was sighing, I searched for the strength to be able to think for myself. I could think of three people to call on : God, of course, my empathy link with Ellis, or my Grandmother, Athena.

All were options, good options, people who could help. I did ask help from God, first, as it is the only proper thing to do. I could tell that she was draining me and I only had a few sparse seconds left to spare before I was knocked out again. I went with the first person my mind came to, and I prayed to all that was good she got the message.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Audrick's POV:<em>**

"This is supposed to my sister?" I asked, mostly to myself as I examined Hayley. Every now and then she would glare to the side, as if at herself, then she would mutter a Greek curse and rub her temples. "Shut it, you!" She'd snap. That wasn't the worst of it, either. That morning she had made her bed, helped me make mine, and fixed up everyone else's. When she talked it was that of a short-circuited robot, like Johnny 5 or something. At breakfast she ate like nobody's business, ordering two extra plates. My sister's calorie-fat-counting personality would never in her right mind eat that much. Not that it really effected how she looked in any way, at least right then. When asked a question, she'd give us a weird look and then run off some long, rant-like answer from a text book. That shocked a lot of people, especially in the Athena cabin - Hayley was smart, sure, but she was never good at spot-on questions.

"Are you okay, Audrick Percival Jackson?" Hayley asked me, tilting her head to the side. It only then occurred to me that I'd been staring at her.

"Oh, um, nothing. Just…lost in thought."

"That makes sense, considering you are -"

"Can you cut the act, Hayley? I mean, seriously. I don't know what you're trying to butter Mom and Dad up for, but quit it, will you? It's starting to freak me out." Had she been drinking in the woods that night and was acting all sweet and nice so Mom wouldn't get on to her too bad?

What was I saying? Hayley wasn't dumb enough to drink, not even in her somewhat rebellious state. That still made me wonder, however: What was up with my bratty sister?

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chelsea's POV:<em>**

I coughed, expecting blood. None came, and I regained my balance as quickly as possible, new energy coursing through me.

My opponent was an apparent Ares boy two years older than me, and he wasn't cutting me any slack whatsoever.

"What's the matter, kitten? Too scared to fight back?"

_I don't like hurting people, _is what I wanted to say, but I'd tried that before and it didn't go over too well. He made a sudden slash, nearly stabbing me in the shoulder. It nicked my arm.

Anger boiled through me. Raising my spear made from rock-hard coral, I made a wild jab towards his lower leg, which he merely deflected.

"Child's play!" he cooed, laughing. I made a growling noise in the back of my throat and lunged myself at him, dropping my spear and my guard in the process. Wiping out his sword, he aimed for my gut, ready to stab me as soon as we collided. I knew it was coming, and I closed my eyes, waiting for the impact.

…

Minutes went by, perhaps hours. I didn't move. I couldn't tell if the blade was lodged in me or not. It certainly wasn't as sharp as I had pictured.

"Kid?" the Ares boy, Tommy I think, called over me. His voice echoed in my ears. "Kid, you okay?"

Since when did Ares' kids give a crap if someone was okay?

My eyes were still tightly shut. "Did I get stabbed by your sword?" I asked slowly, my jaw creaking for some odd reason.

"Made a dent in your armor, yes, but other than that no, it's right here." He held his blade over my face. I thought I saw blood on it, and I bit back a shriek.

"It's my blood, kid. You punched me as you toppled on me, gave me a bloody nose." Tommy knelt closer to me, holding up a piece of bloodied tissue. "Ya see? Now, come on, get up before someone thinks I killed you."

A blurry hand waved in front of my face, and I grabbed it, pulling myself up and wiping my own nose. Tommy sat on one of the bleachers and gave me a sideways grin as he cleaned off his sword. "What's your name, kid?"

"Chelsea Jackson," I answered, shrugging as if it were no big deal.

"Oh, so you're Jackson's kid."

"That's the one…"

Standing up, I realized just how much he towered over me, by at least a foot and half. I was already five foot four. He held out his hand, grinning, saying, "Thomas Rodriquez. Son of Chris Rodriquez and Clarisse LaRue. Our parents used to be enemies."

"Dad might've mentioned something about that." I mumbled, staring at my charred hands. They had gotten burned the night before when I was messing around at the lava wall. I hadn't told anyone about it yet.

"What's up with your hands, there, Chelsea?"

"Nothing," I lied, shoving them in my pockets.

"Don't lie."

"What makes you think I'm lying?" I snapped a little too harshly.

"My dad taught me three important things about women: 1. PMS is a death threat, so always give them what they want that time of the month. 2. Don't look at other women anywhere past their face and neck or the girl'll think you're checking her out and get jealous. And number three – the biggest lie a woman tells is that it's "nothing" or that she's "fine". Now, let me see your hands."

I agreed on all of the above, but I didn't say so. I timidly took my hands from my pockets and showed them to him.

His eyes became intense and wide, a worried, thoughtful, grim look spreading across his features. "Where did you get these burns? What happened?"

I told him what I'd been doing, how I accidently stuck them in some lava. It was almost unbelievable, even to me, but he just nodded along like it all made sense.

"Believe it or not," he said, smiling, "you're not the first kid who's done this."

The redness in my cheeks faded and a light smile played across my lips. "No kidding?"

"As true as true gets." He grabbed my wrist and turned my hands over and over for some time. I think he held on in case I tried to get away, which I wasn't planning on. "I want you to come with me." He finally said.

"Why?" I asked, a little too quickly.

"Just come with me. It's obvious you don't want to go to the infirmary because your parents will find out and that wouldn't be good for your ego nor self-esteem. We've got some medical supplies stocked up in the Hermes cabin; some stolen from drug stores, some for the Apollo's and such, but mostly because we always seem to be getting hurt. I'm sure we've got something for burns as well."

Squeezing my wrist a little, he started to pull me along. I planted my feet firmly in the ground until he got so frustrated of dragging he looked at me.

"Look," I said, "I don't need any charity. These burns'll heal in a day or two. You don't have to do this. Honestly. I'll be fi – "

"Rule number four: If she uses "Fine" to get out of doing something, you know it's actually more serious than previously thought."

"I thought there was only three."

"I learnt that one on my own," He smirked. "Come on."

That time I didn't object.

* * *

><p><strong>So...<strong>

**Has my writing gotten bad or is it just me? I know I'm not putting much into the other twos and such, but that'll come later, I promise. I just wanted to get a little bit away from just Hayley and her Evil Voice Person, to a more realistic thing. Plus, let's admit it - poor Chelsea needed something to cheer her up. :)**

**Hope you enjoyed!~**

**~Future**


	26. We Need a Plan

**_Ellie's POV:_**

My heart thumped in my chest as I made my way across the strawberry fields to the Big House. Hayley had requested I'd meet her there, though I wasn't sure why. She had sent me some jumbled warning via our empathy link some time ago, but it was hard to comprehend.

I'd gotten: He, pah, meh, stick un loggy vy eee-wheel wooooo mwaon named – and then blank. For the past twenty-eight hours I had been trying to figure it out and piece it together, but it just wouldn't take form in my ADHD mind.

As soon as I stepped in the door, I was yanked behind the door and my mouth was covered. "What has she told you?" A voice, not hers, whispered in my ear. I was losing oxygen fast. "What has she told you?" she screamed-whispered this time.

I started gasping, searching for any air that might squeeze its way through. I did the only thing I could think to do – I bit her when she was trying to get a better grip on me. She squealed in outrage.

"What has _who _told me?" I asked hurriedly.

"The girl, Hayley Jackson. _What has she told you?_"

"Nothing," I said, back towards a small desk that sat in the room. Where was Mr. D and Chiron? Outside playing Pinochle no doubt…

"LIAR!" She lunged, knocking me down, and I clawed around for my dagger.

"If you know that she may or may not have told me something then why don't you know what it is!" I hollered, kicking the desk, hoping to gain someone's attention.

"She refuses to tell me! I lifted the curse; she should be bubbling by now, drunk on the mist!"

"I wouldn't tell you, either, you psychotic beast!" I kicked her in the stomach, slight guilt showering over me, but mostly hopefulness as she doubled over on her knees.

"You…idiot!" she panted, as if that was going to insult me. I was the daughter of a prank-player and thief; nothing scared me.

A new facial feature erupted, and the eyes lost their dimness. "Ellis?" It was Hayley's voice now, and I could tell it was actually her. I nodded and she pushed herself off of me. "You've gotta go, now. Get Mom and tell her what's going on! Hurry – I can't hold her off much longer – "

She froze mid-sentence, and I used that as my get away. I ran as fast as I could, afraid not only for my life, but for MJ's.

What had happened to my best friend?

_I'll…explain…later…_A faraway voice said in the back of my head. Then it clicked off as if it were an intercom.

I never stopped running.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chelsea's POV:<em>**

Immediate relief flooded through me as Tommy rubbed this gel-looking stuff on my hands. It was greenish in color, and felt like Aloe.

"Thank you," I breathed, smiling at him, the first time I'd ever really smiled at a boy without feeling nervous. He smiled back.

"Like I said, no problem, you can stop thanking me, oh, stop it," he teased, acting as if I was saying it non-stop. And I might've been, under my breath or something. But I was really grateful, superbly grateful, and I just didn't know how to express it.

"What is this stuff, anyway?" I asked in an attempt at keeping conversation. I didn't know why, but his voice was soothing, like Mom's.

"Fire-Gel, obviously," he said, smirking.

"No, I know that. I mean just…what's in it?" I didn't feel embarrassed, either.

"If I told you that, well, I just might have to kill you."

"Seriously."

He sighed, and for a moment I was afraid I'd irritated him. "Honestly? I don't know. Something the Stoll's kids whipped up."

"You mean like Ellie, Connor Jr. and Carter?"

"Yeah, those guys. My cousins, I guess you could say. Although, I tend to stay in the Ares cabin with Mom. Where do you reside, Chelsea?"

"With Dad in the Poseidon cabin. I'm not one to hang around all the smarts of Athena."

"Why not?" He sat on the bunk next to me, looking thoroughly intrigued.

"Well, I guess it's just not my style. I'm more of a loner, like Dad was way back when."

"I see," he said, after thinking for a moment. "So, how old are you?"

"Eleven," I answered without thinking.

"Oh." He mumbled. "I thought you were like fourteen or something…"

I snorted "Please, me? No. I'm nowhere near. What would make you think that?"

"It's nothing," he said. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, anyway."

Silence consumed us.

"I'll be twelve in a couple of months, though, August 22."

"It's not that. It's just…" he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Listen, I've gotta go. Mom wanted to take me into the woods and uh…yeah."

Tommy stood and made his way for the door, pausing and looking back at me and saying, "At some point you'll understand that you're intelligent, mature, and quite beautiful. Someday, sometime, somehow, you'll see."

He left before I could say another word.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV:<em>**

"ANNABETH, ANNABETH, ANNABETH, ANNABETH!" Ellie burst into the Athena cabin, making me jump.

"Ellie –"

"No time, not enough, come with me now, your daughter, Hayley, in danger, need help…" she began practically hyperventilating as she tried to tell me what happened.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I said. "Elizabeth Stoll, take a deep breath. Count to ten. And then, try telling me that again, slowly so I can actually understand."

She gasped in a huge breath, count to ten superfast, and looked me dead in the eye. "Hayley's been taken over by some psychotic-witch-lady, and she's controlling her body. Hayley's not even really there, unless she can overpower the other one, but that doesn't happen often and she's got her under some kind of curse and Annabeth you have to come right now, get Percy and let's go!" She grabbed my wrist and yanked me towards the door, but I was still trying to comprehend what she was saying.

"COME ON COME ON COME ON! Ugh, PERCY!" She screamed out loud to the whole camp. "COME GET YOUR DADGUM WIFE BEFORE I HAVE TO KILL HER!"

"Ellie."

"PERCY PERCY PERCY! ANNABETH'S DYING COME SAVE HER!"

"Ellie!"

"NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW HAYLEY IS IN DANGER YOU NO GOOD GODMOTHER LET'S GO NOW!"

"ELLIS!" I screamed louder than her, and she paused in her steps, Percy ramming into her and knocking us all down on top of one another.

"Oh, Percy, thank God, Zeus, all of the above, we have to go save Hayley."

Percy gripped her shoulders tensely, glaring at her. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, Ellie," his voice was hoarse.

"Oh, cut the crap and come on!"

"Explain what's going on," Percy looked to me, his hands still attached to Ellie, keeping her in place.

"The dream." I spoke two words and he glanced back and forth between Ellie and me.

"Ellie," his voice was soft yet demanding. "Where is Hayley?"

"She was at the Big House a few minutes ago. I…she told me to run while she still had the chance, come get Annabeth and I guess you, too. She didn't get to say anything else because she froze and I was sure the Voice was taking back over."

Percy nodded his head stiffly, turning to face me.

He spoke five simple words. "Annabeth, we need a plan."

I couldn't help but agree.

* * *

><p><em><strong>I don't own PJO. Hope you enjoyed!<strong>_

_**~Future**_

_**PS, Any more guesses? I've got her picked out, and I've changed my mind; it's no longer the Undine. She was just a minion of the "Voice". :)**_


	27. Plans Turn to Kissing

**_Hayley's POV: _**

Voice stomped through the Strawberry Fields after the tussle with Ellie. It had hurt me so much to see my body trying to kill her. And when I had had the chance to tell her to run away and I had full control over my body, I felt so powerful, like I was greater than anything or anybody else. She spelled me before I took too much control, though, causing my body to have a momentary stall. I couldn't help my best friend, I couldn't protect my family. I was useless.

I wished I had figured that out sooner.

_Eris, _I thought sourly, _why are you trying to take over Olympus? _

"Because. The goddess of chaos, they said. Never to be allowed on Olympus they said. Too dangerous they said. Well I'll show them, I'll show them all! Us minor gods and goddesses haven't gotten our two-cents worth out of helping running the world. Olympus will be mine!"

_But why? _I screamed in outrage, gripping my spirit-like hair in an attempt to rip it out. You can't rip out fog though, so it didn't go over too well.

"_Because._" She hissed. "Not another word, Jackson, or I'll spell you again."

_Wouldn't be the first time…_

"Quiet!"

_Eris, listen, you don't need to take over Olympus. You're just angry, and I know how anger makes you feel. But you shouldn't let it get to you. Stand up and fight for what you believe in. _

Eris rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. Give me a break, Jackson. That crap won't work on me, I'm a goddess for Christ sake! And you are _no _daughter of Aphrodite."

I glared steely at her. _I'm closer than you'll ever be. _

"Enough!" she shouted.

_Come on, Eris. Surely you've got better things to do than this. Why not just go talk to Uncle Zeus and work something out? _

"Foolish human. First you insult my beauty, and now my intelligence?"

_I never said anything about your intelligence. Of course, I'm sad to say Apollo is smarter than you are. _

She growled at the back of my throat. "You're pushing your luck, Jackson."

_Exactly what I was aiming for, _and in that instant I shoved her thoughts aside and sent mine forward. Crawling back into my mind, my body, was sort of like sticking a round peg in a square hole; it was almost, nearly painful, and it made my entire being ache.

My vision cleared, though, and I realized that I was now seeing myself for real. I could feel my hands and my face, feel myself blinking. My thoughts and my body and my seeing were mine now.

"Yes! Ha ha!" I cheered in victory right as a huge form came crashing into me, knocking me down. Another came from my left said and grasped me by the shoulder, and a third jumped me from the back. "What are you DOING?" I screamed, threshing and kicking as they held me down. "Eris! You evil little – ow!"

I felt a spirit-like form grasp my neck, strangling me. _You evil fool! How dare you take me down. Let me in, now, this instant!_

"Never!" I screamed.

"Eris?" a voice questioned, the one holding me down by my shoulders. I glanced up and saw Ellis, her face tight and fierce. "Hayley?"

"Mom, Dad, Ellie?" I looked at all of them with wide, incredulous eyes, just as Eris pinned me down harder, pressing her thumbs and palms into my throat, cutting off air. Tears formed in my eyes and colors danced before them in twisting shapes. "Get…her…strangling…me…" I choked, sure I was meeting my end. My vision clouded, growing darker by the second.

Then my body felt empty. I was a hollow shell. And while I couldn't see, I could still hear. "Wonderful!" Eris finally said, using her own, true voice to be known to the world. I heard a gasp, then the whips of swords from sheathes and daggers from belts.

"Eris," Dad's voice was edged with fear and a demonic tone. I imagined him, standing in a battle stance, his almost salt-and-pepper hair flowing back in the wind. His shoulders squared, his feet in a horse-stance, ready to attack. And Mom by his side, her grey eyes calculating, her body tense, everything clicking together like one ginormous clock.

I managed to hear the single swish of a sword before I completely went blank.

**_Later in the Infirmary…_**

Someone squeezed my hand. I took it as a sign to open my eyes, so I did, even though they were heavier than the weight of the sky.

Mom grinned at me when I looked at her. "Mama?" I asked smally, my voice like a three year old's. She sighed with utter relief and kissed my forehead.

She didn't even speak to me, not at first. "Percy," she called. I'd never seen my dad so upset in all of my days. It was so unlike him to cry, yet there he was, his eyes puffy, and it hurt my ego just a bit.

"If you keep crying," I mumbled, "someone's going to think I got a sissy for a father."

It was a stupid joke, but it brought strangled laughs.

"Must have got some of Eris in my eye," he said, pulling a chair up and sitting next to Mom.

"You can't kill a…a goddess, though…"

"Then she'll stay in Tartarus for sometime, I guess."

"But she'll be back, won't she?" I asked softly. Mom nodded.

"More than likely. It could take years, though, Hayley."

"It could also be just another week," I pointed out, and she shook her head.

"I guess it's possible. Only if you see the glass as half-empty though. I prefer to see it as half-full."

"Always something good to do," I said. Then I smiled. "Where's Ellie?"

"Over here, dork." She said, and I turned my head. She sat on a cot, her arm in a sling and her leg in a cast. "It's going to be hard to explain this when we return to school. Thanks a lot, best friend."

"Don't mention it."

"Ha-ha."

"So," I said, addressing them all, "how exactly did you defeat a spirit?"

Mom rolled her eyes and glared slightly at Dad, who smiled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "You see, I've been thinking that there was a chance celestial bronze wouldn't kill a quarter blood. I wasn't exactly sure, though, but anyway…"

"Long story short, great old Percy here thought it would be a good idea to get her back in your body, and then stab you in the gut with his sword." Ellie said, digging under her nails.

I stared at my father with some difficulty. "I'm taking away your father of the year award," I told him, trying to be serious but smiling instead. "You could've killed me!"

"But I didn't!" he shrugged and laughed. "I love you, Hayley. I need to go check on Audrick and Chelsea now – I don't even know where they've been all this time."

"I think I might have an idea," said someone from the corner, and we all looked at the woman with tight smiles. Her blonde hair was flawless and she wore no makeup that day. Aphrodite. "Have you ever heard of a great summer romance?" she asked wistfully.

"Yeah, it's a book by Nicholas Sparks and a movie called _The Notebook._" Ellie said sarcastically.

Aphrodite laughed, a sound like twinkling bells. "Ah, Nicholas, one of my best children. Allie and Noah were so perfect for each other. I knew they would end up together, even in death."

"So, _who's _having a summer romance?" Dad asked, though I knew he already had an idea.

Aphrodite grinned. I forced a smile to my face, fluffed my pillows, laid back and closed my eyes. Aphrodite was going to have a long story to tell.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chelsea's POV:<em>**

"Okay…now straighten your back…aim a little lower with the bow…okay, now a little higher – perfect!" Tommy stood next to me and held my hand with his, guiding me along the edges of the bow. We gripped the arrow together, pulling back and firing. It hit a straight bullseye, and I jumped up and down, clapping my hands excitedly.

"Did you see that? I did it, I did it!" I threw my arms around his neck, and he held me there, smiling. Then I leaned back, still laughing, and an impulse came over me. Everything took on a slow motion like they did in the movies, and I leaned forward, and he leaned into me, and our lips collided. It was the best feeling in the world.

I guess I'm not as left out as I thought I was after all.

"Chelsea Athena Jackson!" My dad's voice yelled, but at that moment, I really didn't care. All that mattered to me was the boy I had in my arms.

* * *

><p><em><strong>NOT THE END. I needed to get that out. Hope you enjoyed, and especially with the Tomsea fluff. :)<strong>_

_**...and yes, I just invented Tomsea. Like it? :D**_

_**~Future**_

_**God bless!**_


	28. Jamie Morstan

3rd POV:

Annabeth watched silently, holding Percy's hand as Moon walked out of the infirmary and back to her her friends. Percy let out a shaky breath.

"What now?" she asked, taking her eyes off her oldest.

"I-I, I stabbed my daughter," Percy said, starting to turn away. Annabeth gripped his hand harder.

"Come on, Seaweed Brain," she said softly. "Let's go somewhere a little more private, shall we?"

She led him to the lake, where she knew he would feel better. _I can't believe I'm about to do this,_ she thought to herself as she walked to the edge of the pier and – still holding hands – walked right off the edge. Just like she hoped he would, he enveloped them both in a big air bubble, just like had so many years ago.

"In any other circumstance, this wouldn't make sense, but Perseus Jackson, I am so glad that you _saved_ our daughter." With no warning, she attacked him with a kiss. He slowly warmed into it and wrapped his arms around her, equating her passion.

They stayed under for around 15 minutes. Mostly just embracing each other, thankful for the time they were able to have escaped from the world. Percy broke away and said, "Let's go for a walk."

They floated to the edge of the lake and this time Percy led the way. They walked around the edge of the lake and down to the sea, watched a couple of the hippocampi play in the surf, then Percy looked at Annabeth with a twinkle in his eye.

"Come on!" He said dragging her away laughing like a maniac. The run turned into a race that Annabeth led for a good majority, that is, until Percy suddenly turned and altered their course from heading to the Mess Hall and Cabins toward the Arena. By the time they got their they were both sweating and out of breath. They grabbed a cup of water, and Percy drew Riptide.

"Let's do this," Annabeth said with an evil grin as she unsheathed her dagger. They took their place in the middle of the arena, the few demigods that were there for some extra sword practice stopped and stared as two of the most famous demigods went at it.

"You can't defeat me, Seaweed brain," Annabeth said.

"Oh, and here I thought _you_ were the wise one," Percy said, parrying another one of the strikes. Annabeth's gray eyes flashed as she slashed at him. "The most you can do to me is tire me out, but good luck with that."

"Darn you, Percy!" She lashed out, frustrated that her moves still weren't leaving a mark – one of the major drawbacks of fighting someone who's taken a dive in the River Styx. The crowd of campers grew as their dance of fight became faster. There were cheers coming from both sides. "PERCY!" "ANNABETH!" "ATHENA!" "POSEIDON!"

Finally, after 30 fast minutes, Percy gave in, and – though he would never tell Annabeth (she really already knew) – let her win. Laughing and panting they embraced each other. "I think you _might_ have bruised me," Percy said rubbing his arm.

Annabeth shook her head. "Whatever you say, Perse." Arm in arm, they walked back to the cabins and showers.

A couple of the younger campers stared at the couple as they walked back to their cabins. A few of them that were following from the arena were still talking about the match. The match and the adventures of the greatest pair of half-bloods there ever were.

**(Written by Jezebel Raewin)**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Audrick's POV:<em>**

**_(Yes, this one was written by me. :) Thanks Jezi~)_**

"And then, you'll never believe this - Percy stabbed her in the stomach with his sword!" Ellie told the story like she was reading a rip-roaring fairytale to five year olds, not that I wasn't enjoying the extravagating ways her hands were moving.

I shook my head. "There's _no _way. Dad's not _that _stupid and Mom would never even dream of letting him do that."

"I've got the scar to prove it," Hayley lifted up her pink top, and there was, in fact, an almost in seeable mark clearly made by a sword. "Funny thing is, it didn't even exactly "cut" me, so…"

"Blessed my magic?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Could've been."

"All that matters is that Eris is gone now, at least for a little while." I smiled at Hayley. "And I must admit it's good to have my real sister back." I punched her shoulder, and she punched me back, playfully, and I felt a new bond forming between us.

"Stephanie, have you seen my – oh…" the girl who had walked in stopped short and a blush rose in her cheeks, igniting her startling green-and-grey eyes. "You're not Stephanie…"

"No, sorry, we're the Jacksons and one Stoll."

"Present and accounted for!" Ellie shouted, and a part of me laughed, while the other part couldn't take my eyes off of her.

She was tall and short at the same time. She had long blond hair that was pulled into a messy bun right under her ear. She held books and scrolls in her arms, at least five if I counted right, and she wore a Camp Half-Blood tee with a denim skirt. She had on bright red Converse.

"What did you need, Jamie?" my sister asked her.

"Jamie." I repeated, and she looked at me even though it had been barely a whisper. She must've had good hearing. My knees felt weak and I looked to Hayley for support. She made gestures like, "Keep it going, talk to her!"

"I, uh, I mean, hi, Jamie. I'm Audrick Jackson. You can call me PJ, or Audrick, or Jackson, or, um…" I resisted the urge to tell her she could call me anything she wanted to call me and still I would listen to her.

She smiled and held out her free hand. "Jamie Morstan. Daughter of Athena and Randolph Morstan. How do you do?"

"Jamie," I said again, and I didn't know why. Suddenly my cheeks were burning, as were hers, and I took note that when she's nervous she bites her lip and messes with her hair, usually twirling it around her finger.

"Um, Hayley, I'm looking for Stephanie Adler, daughter of Coeus. Yes, I know he's a titan, but…anyway. Have you seen her?"

"She's most likely staying with the Hermes cabin, or perhaps with the other Athena's at the Arena, maybe the forgery if I know Steph."

"Thanks," she said, and then looked to me, her nervousness coming back on. "And thank you, Audrick. It was nice meeting you."

"You…you, too. Heh…" she reached up on her tiptoes and kissed my cheek, and I think my heart stopped beating for a moment there. Then she waved to everyone else and left the Cabin. I slowly sunk down unto a bunk and got Hayley to look at me. "This is it, I'm dying, Aphrodite has finally done it."

Hayley tried to resist her smile, but Ellie busted out laughing. "Audrick's in loooooooooove!" she shouted. "Jamie and Name Freak sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby Jamick in the baby carriage!"

"Ellie!" Hayley and I shouted at the same time, and she shrugged, holding her hands up in defense.

"It's true though," she said, taking a bite of chocolate. "And you can't deny it."

"You're right," I agreed, my heart doing flips just thinking of her. "I…I can't…oh, Aphrodite, kill me now!"

"Oh, but why?" the blonde whined, standing in front of me in a fuchsia toga, perfecting her eyeliner. "This is just the beginning for Jamick, trust me. And wait until we get Hayter! Or perhaps it'll be Carley…yes, I like Carley a lot better than Hayter. Carley it is!" Aphrodite laughed. "Of course, there's also Tomsea."

"Hold up, hold up!" Hayley shouted to the goddess. "Who's "Hayter" – "

"Carley," Aphrodite corrected, making her hand mirrior evaporate in curling pink smoke.

"Carley," Hayley corrected. "Who is _Carley_?"

"You'll see soon enough," she smiled. "Before you ask, Tomsea is your little sister and Tommy Rodriguez. They're so _cute _together!"

"What about me?" Ellie asked.

Aphrodite's face fell a bit. "Well, I, um…I'll have to get back to you on that one, sweet cakes. Right now I've gotta split; official god-like duties to perform." She snapped her fingers and was gone in an instant. Hayley then smirked at me and Ellie. Ellie grabbed one wrist and Hayley the other.

"Come on!" Hayley said, starting to run. "We're going to teach you how to be the perfect gentleman."

"For your date with Jamie!"

"What date?" I almost had to holler so they could hear me.

"The one we've just made, of course. Hayley will call her and tell her to meet you down by the pier at five this afternoon. We have so little time!" Ellie began rambling, so I kind of tuned it out.

The vision of Jamie Morstan still danced in my mind.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Haha! Audrick finally has someone to call his own. Hope you enjoyed! Di, where are you? ! ? !<strong>_

_**~Future**_


	29. Lover Lover Lover Filler

_**Audrick's POV: **_

"HAYLEY!"

"Stop moving, you're making it worse!"

"You're _plucking _my _eyebrows._ And I'm a _guy_!"

"Stop your whining, Audrick. Do you _want _Jamie Morstan to reject you harder than Jen and Brad?" Ellie said, staring hard into my eyes.

"Oh, God that was awful," Hayley said back to her.

"I know, right?"

"Did you hear that she's pregnant with twins now?"

"Where did you hear that?"

"Last _People _addition. You didn't read it?"

"Didn't get a chance, plus Mom told me I was reading way too many of them, and I'd have to space myself out."

"_What? _Who can read too much _People_?"

"I think we're losing the point here," I said, shoving them off of me and rubbing my eyebrows. "If she thinks I'm gay because of you two –"

"Oh, shut up and take it like a man. Check this out, Hales," Ellie held up two separate shirts, one that was a darker, closer to my skin shirt and one a checkered dress shirt.

They looked at each other for a moment, a silent conversation happening between their eyes. "Checkered," they agreed in unison, showing it to me. I'd be the first to admit that it wasn't bad. I even kind of liked it.

"What pants?"

"Ooh, his light jeans will do wonders with this shirt. Check it," Hayley put the pants beneath the shirt and smiled. "See?"

"I see, I see. But what about these black skinny jeans my brother has?" She put those under the shirt over the jeans.

"Eew, no. My brother wouldn't be able to pull off skinny jeans. No offense, Audrey."

"No, none taken, sis," I said, rolling my eyes sarcastically. She rolled her eyes back and stuck her tongue out. I don't know why, but I restrained myself from insulting her.

Fighting felt wrong now, when she was so close to death.

So I'm a sentimental sap. Sue me.

"Maybe I could pick out the clothes for myself?" I suggested when they started a big argument of what shoes I needed to wear. "_Alone._" I continued, and they studied me with careful eyes.

"I think…"

"We should let him do it," Hayley finished for Ellie. "I mean, we're not going to be there forever to help him, might as well let him start doing it now. Come on, let's go tell Jamie to meet him at the pier on the south shore, but not the north." Hayley winked and me and yanked Ellie away, and I couldn't help but see some restraint, some kind of knowing in what Hayley had said. _Not going to be there forever. _That was pretty deep.

Ellie was only sixteen though, what should she have to worry about? She had many more years to find the guy of her dreams, become an artist down in Pensicola, and do everything she'd ever dreamed of.

At least, I thought she did.

Hayley smiled and nodded. It was fifteen to five, and I was a nervous wreck just thinking about her, her cute little smile, that nervous lip-biting and hair twirling she was possessive of.

"How do you feel? I mean, you look great, but feel is important as well. Any girl can tell if a guy's not comfortable and if you're not comfortable then she's not going to be comfortable and it'll all be just one huge mess."

"Take a breath, Hales."

She did, a sarcastic one I might add, then she grinned again. "Answer the question."

"I feel…I feel…" _Amazing. Outstanding. Wow. Better than ever. Nervous. Excited. In love. _I had many answers to choose from, so I went with one that would make her satisfied and keep Ellie from messing with me in the future. "I feel…_comfortable._"

Hayley clasped her hands together. "Marvelous! Jamie's down at the south pier. _South. Pier. _Not the North but the South, got it?"

I gave her an odd look but nodded. "Got it. Where's the flowers? And the book?"

"Here and here. And the picnic basket."

The girls' plans were to have me go down there and make Jamie a romantic, picnic-like dinner down by the shore, where there was a small Southern pier compared to the much larger Northern pier a few feet away. She loved books, especially medical ones, so they had ask Mom if they could have one of the many medical journals the Athena library possessed.

"What's this one?" I pointed to one particularly short book that sat on the shelf, right where the medical journal had been.

"Ooh!" Hayley said. "Ellie, didn't she say she loved that Sherlock Holmes stuff? This is perfect! Take her this, too. I've got another copy at home we can bring back to camp come Spring or so."

Ellie nodded, a gigantic smile on her face. "Thank God. This is amazing! She'll absolutely adore it, Jackson. Take some of those roses out, put some pens in. Ah, yes, there we go. Oh, come here!" Ellie licked her hand, and ran it through my hair, messing it all up from the laid down position I had previously had it in.

Hayley tapped her chin and bobbed her head in approval. "That's much better. Seven to five – get going you idiot! Hup, two, hup two, hup, two!"

I found myself dashing down to the lake, not because of what Hayley had said, but because I was excited and nervous.

And when I get excited and nervous, I need to get whatever it is over with and _fast._

I tapped my foot impatiently. Three minutes. It was three minutes after five and she wasn't there yet. In absolute boredom, I squatted down and started spreading the blanket on the ground, half of the sand, half on the pier. I set the candle on the pier, thinking that we could sit on the sand. I set the plates out, and rearranged them almost fifteen times. I was just tilting the grape bowl fifty degrees to the west when I felt someone come up behind me.

"Oh," I sighed, closing my eyes, turning around and smiling. "I thought you weren't – oh."

It was just Chiron.

"Hey, Chiron. How're you?" I stared off unto the horizon, hearing splashing in the background. The sun was just starting to set, and Jamie was going to miss it.

I pulled my legs up to my chest and rested my chin on them.

"I'm fine," he said. "But I'm sure that you're not. What's wrong, who is this for?"

"It's for Jamie," I mumbled. "You know, if she'd bother to actually _show up._"

Chiron frowned and took a seat beside me, tucking his horse legs beneath him. "I'm not a master on this type of thing, by any means."

"That's not what Dad tells me. He says that you're quite the ladies man."

"He was," Dad sat down in front of the candle, crossing his legs Indian style. "And he is. Some of the tree spirits would love to have him, if he'd only let them."

Chiron shook his head. "I've overcome my stay in the field of love, for I am here to serve the heroes. Until there are no more, here is where I will be. How is Annabeth, Percy? We haven't much time to talk anymore. I say because of you she's forgotten me." Chiron chuckled and so did Dad. Sometimes I didn't understand their humor, but a small laugh escaped my lips as well.

"She's fine. I'm starting to worry about her, though. She keeps saying she's sick to her stomach. I think she's almost happy for tomorrow to get here."

Chiron frowned and rubbed his chin. "My, what a shame. Keep your eye on her, Perseus. Zeus knows that girl will never give in and go see a professional."

"She only needs a mental one, _maybe,_" I said, and they smirked to it.

"He's got a bit of a way to go, but he's getting there," Dad said, and he nudged me.

I didn't nudge back.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Percy's POV: <em>**

Jamie Morstan. He had fallen for Jamie Morstan. I knew he would, at some point in time. I'd met her before and she was as sweet as anyone could be, and had all of the likeable qualities Audrick possessed, with a little bit of a control freak side.

I knew her secret, though, and that would kill him if he found out. I didn't want to be the one to tell him. Chiron's nod told me I wanted to do so otherwise.

"So, this Jamie girl," I said as Chiron stood up to leave. "What's she like?"

Audrick snorted a bit and smiled softly, the kind of smile I'd seen on my own dorky face when Annabeth and I were dating, when I realized we were in love. "She's…she's amazing. She has blonde hair like Mom's and I can tell it must be wavy. Her eyes; it's like getting lost in a pool of smoke in a maze, and even though you're trying to find your way out, you're glad you can't because it brings out an amazing adventure you know you're going to have to fight to understand, to win. And her _face_, her _personality_, her _brains _and her _humor_. She's everything anyone could ever ask for in a woman, and she doesn't even realize how beautiful she is. I want her to know that." He looked up to meet my eyes. "How did you show Mom that?"

"It wasn't easy," I didn't lie. "Your mom was…she was different, you know? You definitely need to be her best friend first, so she can build trust. If I've learned anything about the Athena kids, it's that they don't trust easily. And she might despise you at first, but get on her good side, and never stop trying." I sighed, knowing I had to do it now while I still had the chance. "Speaking of Jamie, there's something I need to tell you…"

I was about to tell him, I swear to Olympus that I was. Then _she _walked up, and I knew that I couldn't do it, not with her standing there. She held a finger up to her lips. _Shh, _she mouthed, as she placed her hands over Audrick's eyes.

"Guess who?"

"Bill Clinton!"

"Haha!" Jamie laughed so hard she snorted, making Audrick laugh with her as she sat down next to him. They looked so happy together, and I didn't want to embarrass Audrick like Paul had embarrassed me in front of Annabeth so many times.

I fake yawned and stretched, standing up. "Well, guys, I think it's time for this old man to hit the hay."

Jamie smiled at me. How sweet and innocent she looked. It killed me to know what was really going on behind those eyes, in that mind, in her body. "Goodnight, Mr. Jackson."

I nodded, and eyed my son like I guess any good father would do when their children stay out late with other individuals of the opposite gender.

…I've got to stop spending so much time with Annabeth.

Speaking of Annabeth, where was she? I really hoped she wasn't puking in the bathroom again.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chelsea's POV:<em>**

_I sat with my feet dangling off the peer, the tips of my toes just barely scraping the edge of the water. Wind made my skirt flap in the wind, and I had the sleeves of my Camp Half-Blood shirt rolled up to my shoulders. It was really hot that day. _

_"Got you one of these," Tommy sat down next to me and handed me an ice cream cone. I laughed. _

_"Where did you get one of these?" _

_"Stoll boys raided the ice cream truck when it came down I-11."_

_"So I see. Thank you." I licked the vanilla ice cream and took in the sunset stretching across the camp grounds. Tommy's hand slipped into mine, and he laced our fingers together. _

_"You know," he smiled, licked his chocolate cone, "you're not too bad for a **little **kid." _

_"And you're not too bad for a "bad" kid."_

_He mocked offense. "That is stereotypical for sons of Ares' children and you should be ashamed of yourself."_

_"Agh, too many words in one sentence. Shhh…" He shoved me playfully and I shoved him back. Tommy laughed, bending down so his fingers could skim the water and splashing water on me. I squealed and pushed him into the water, laughing my head off. _

_He came up from, splurging from the water, and grinning mischeviously. Tommy started swimming towards me and I pulled my legs back up on the pier. "Oh, no. Don't you dare -"_

_In that next instant I was in the water with him, splashing and screaming and playing. I didn't even care that my ice cream was ruined, as was his. _

_He was just about to beat me in our water war, the blue crystal showering my face every few seconds before I could even shove my water outward, when the light bulb came on above my head. Water powers. _

_Duh. _

_He splashed me once again, and I caught his wrists in my hands. "You're gonna regret ruining my ice cream," I said, smirking and swimming a little ways away. Then, mustering all of my courage and strength, I created a humongus wave, making it gorw so high I was practically able to touch a cloud. Tommy's eyes grew wide, and I sent the wave crashing down. I knew he would be all right (I made sure to put a bubble around him just before the wave and I hit), and I laughed as I was engulfed in a haze of showering foam and bubbles. _

_Under the water, I swam until I saw him, cheeks puffed out, eyes tightly closed, and his hands over his ears. I allowed myself into the air bubble and walked over to him, though it was more like I was floating. I grabbed his hands and forced them down from his ears, making him crack his eyes open. I smiled. _

_"Hey, genius. You're in an air bubble, it's okay to breathe." And then, well, I'm not sure what exactly came over me, but not a second later my lips were pressed to his, my fingers curled in his dark mass of hair, our bodies enclosed around the others', his hands protectively on my waist. _

_Right then, I knew I never wanted it to end. I might have only been eleven years old. _

_But we didn't care. That's all that mattered. _

**_Beep. Beep. Beep. _**

I groaned and opened my eyes, irritated by the alarm clock I'd been sleeping so finely to. That memory never wanted to leave my mind. Yesterday afternoon had been priceless, and we planned to do it all again today. I hoped it would be just as good, if not better.

Then I suddenly realized something. It was July Fourth, and we were leaving directly after the firework display.

What if I never saw Tommy again?

_But that's absurd, _I thought, trying to calm myself down, my cheek still smashed up against the pillow, my hair a wild wreck. _Surely through Facebook or email or maybe he lives close by…_

I knew he didn't, though. Clarisse had decided to move the whole family a little farther south that summer, moving to Virginia. And that sickened me. Sure, it was only a few hours' drive away, but in all the novels and plays and histories and movies I had seen and read, long distance relationships never worked.

We were just like Noah and Allie from _The Notebook _or John and Savanna from _Dear John. _A pair of summer romancers, a Romeo and Juliet in the making.

The thought made me want to gag. I threw the covers off in a sudden bolt of energy, and I didn't even bother to take my nightwear off as I ran from the cabin and to the Ares. I had to see him, had to know he was still there. We had fifteen hours until we'd be separated for longer than I could stand.

And I planned to spend every single waking moment of it with him, as long as I could without getting to annoying. It wasn't just a want to – It was a _have _to.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Ahg, so sappy and romantical. Trust me, though, we get a little more serious after this - like, way serious. Be prepared for unexpected hurdles, ya'll. I don't own PJO. God bless!~<strong>_

_**~Future**_


	30. So That's What it is

**Hey, guys. I'd just like to say that I've made a mistake. An age mistake. You see, I had originally planned for Hayley to be seventeen, Audrick fourteen, and Chelsea eleven/twelve. So...now I've made it that way. You can reference chapter 20 for the changes, which aren't much but are signifigant for the story. **

**Hope you guys aren't mad at me. **

**Jezi! I decided I needed to do something before I posted the fluffer you've written for me. It's about Jamick, and what they're going through, what her "secret" is. Hope you don't mind. **

**Enjoy!**

**God bless. :)**

**~Hannie**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Jamie's POV:<em>**

I didn't want to wake up. If I woke up, then last night would've been real, and if last night was real, then today was real.

I didn't want it to be real.

Real was bad, especially for me. I could've lived my whole life, however long I still had of it, praying that it wasn't real.

But when I blinked my eyes as the sun shown into them, I had to realize that it was, and that the arm wrapped around me protectively was more real than anything that had ever happened to me. We were only fourteen; I mean, he couldn't be in love with me, and I not with him. We were just good friends who spent a night out by the ocean, and had dinner, and talked and smiled and laughed…

"Get your head out of the clouds, Jamie," I sighed to myself, picking at the sand on the outer edge of the blanket. "Think realistically for once in your life."

I shifted slightly, trying not to wake him up, and I had to hold in my laugh when I turned over to look at him.

Audrick had his thumb slipping out of his mouth, where it had been, I guessed, for some time during the night.

"Shoot!" I said, slapping my hand over my mouth for fear I had woken him up. He didn't even move, and I sighed in relief. _Steph is going to kill me, _I thought. _She must be worried sick about me. Dad had put her in charge…_

Not to mention I still hadn't told him. That was bugging at me harder than anything else.

I'd have to tell him sometime.

_When he wakes up, _I reasoned with myself. _When he wakes up I'll tell him. _

I abandoned that decision rather quickly. Yawning next to me, Audrick stretched and smoothed my hair back. For so long I'd been used to my bun, to not feeling it there, and when I had worn it down last night…

I had this fear that I would never feel my hair again.

It was a healthy fear, that's what my doctor had said. Irrational, but healthy.

_This _was irrational. All of this was just _irrational._

"Good morning," I smiled and flipped over so I was on my opposite side.

"Mornin'," he slurred, yawning again.

"I had a lot of fun last night," I continued, stalling myself. "And the food was –"

"Excellent?" he smirked, hovering over me. "Yeah, you've told me." He leaned in for a kiss, and I almost allowed myself to be subdued into it.

I bit my lip and turned away at the last second, forcing my cheeks to flare.

_Play it off as a school girl, play it off as a school girl._

I repeated Stephanie's words in my head without ceasing.

Audrick seemed a little disheartened, but smiled anyway and laid back on the sand. "What's your favorite shark?"

"Great White," I answered without hesitation.

"I like goblin sharks myself."

"Why?" I asked, genuinely confused.

"Because they're small…and they sneak up on you…" my face was still turned to the crystal water and rising sun, so I didn't see him start to slink up and reach for my stomach.

"Audri – bahaha!"

He started tickling me like there was no tomorrow, so hard in fact I snorted. Then we laughed even more. Standing up, he reached underneath my legs and lifted me up, and squealed, wrapping my frail arms around his neck.

I kicked my legs as he started walking towards the end of the pier.

I just couldn't stop laughing and kicking and screaming and pleading for him not to throw me in the water.

"I can't swim!" I shouted at one point, right before he was about to toss me in. He hesitated.

"You can't swim? You can't _swim_?"

It sounded like more of a statement the second time than a question.

"No," I said, still in his arms. "I can't. My dad was always afraid of the water, I guess because he knew my mom was Athena and she and Poseidon were mortal enemies, even back then. And he was scared for me and Harriet and Johnny's lives."

"_And_" was my so proclaimed "nervous word". I used it when I was worried or confused or lost.

And right then I was all of the above.

Worried because of what he would think, not only when I told him my secret, but about me not being able to swim. He was Poseidon's grandson after all.

Confused because of all the turmoil I was feeling inside me. Love, if I could call it that because it felt like so much more, was warily confusing for anyone I suppose, and the fear of losing that with him when I told him made me want to scream at the sky.

Lost. Lost in emotions, lost in his eyes. Lost in my mind. Lost like a poor abandoned puppy. Just lost.

He set me down on the pier's edge, and smiled widely at me.

"You wanna learn?" Audrick had a sparkle in his eyes I'm sure no one had seen before. A gleam of hope, a gleam of faith. A yearning to break down my protective walls.

"Sure," I'm not exactly certain of why my mouth formed the word, but such a feeling of ecstasy shuddered through me as I did.

Then he chuckled and pulled at the dress I'd worn. "We might need to get changed first. Well, at least you do." He gestured to our apparel, then wrapped an arm around my shoulders as we walked back to the picnic area and gathered our things.

"Hey," he said, glancing at me with his eyebrows raised in question. "What's this?"

He held up a bundle of thin, frail blonde hair, and I quickly snatched it out of his hand and stuffed it in my cardigan pocket. "It's nothing," I said quickly, averting his gaze.

I was a bad liar, and I knew it. He just shrugged, though, and continued gathering everything up.

"JACKSON!" Stephanie came stomping, about two hundred yards away, and I wasn't surprised when I was sure the whole camp could hear her. "You are SO dead!"

Audrick looked at me and grinned, a silent agreement being made.

"Run!"

Together we took off, flying down the beach at the speed of light.

"No, no, no, no," I shook my head and rubbed my practically bare arms. My swimsuit had a small skirt attached to the bottom of it, and even less on the sleeves.

"Come on," he tried to coax, waving his arms out back and forth.

I bit my lip and shook my head again.

"Jamie," he smiled. "Look at me." When I did, he watched me carefully, searching my face and my whole body. "Do you trust me?"

Audrick's hand extended outward, and I stared at it for a while, contemplating in my mind.

"Do you trust me?" he repeated.

I glanced back and forth, thought about, but my lip to the point of nearly biting through it.

Finally, I nodded, and I grabbed his hand and stepped into the water. It was, surprisingly, warm. "There, not too bad, right?"

"Right," I mumbled, my toes sinking into the sand.

"Ready to move forward?"

He didn't really wait for an answer and lead me a little farther out, where I could just barely reach the bottom of the water if I was on the tips of my toes.

"Here's what you do," Audrick said, moving another inch away from me, and I felt myself instinctively reaching for him. When I did, I tottered on my balancing, and fell faceforward into the water.

It scared me so much I forgot to close my mouth and I screamed, kicking and squirming and flipping out beneath the roaring waves.

A pair of hands grabbed my shoulders, but I was freaking out so much I only inhaled more water. I screamed again and again and again, until I was dragged into the air, coughing up water like there was no tomorrow.

Audrick shook my shoulders, then pulled me behind him and helped me unto the shore. I kept coughing and splurging, until I had nothing left in me and I laid back in the sand and closed my eyes. He laid down next to me, panting just as heavily as I was.

"So," he said, smiling, "ready to try again?"

I didn't answer.

"I don't…I don't really feel good right now, Audrick. I – I need to lay down, just for a bit." I could feel the exhaustion seeping through the pores of my skin, my disease flaring up again.

"Can I just say one thing first?" He asked, hopping up as I tried to walk away, yawning and sighing at the same time.

"Yeah, sure," I mumbled, rubbing my eyes. _I need my medicine, I need my medicine, I need my medicine…_

He ran a hand through his hair. "I think I'm in love with you. And, I was kind of hoping you would feel that way, too."

It hit me by surprise. But I knew it was coming; I'd suspected it all along.

"Au-Audrick…" I stuttered, "you _can't _be in love with me."

"I am, though!" He protested. "I swear to the moon and the stars that I am. I'm young, I know, a year younger than you, but Jamie, you're everything I've ever wanted, ever asked for. I can't let you get away from me."

"I can't _let _you be in love with me."

"Why?"

"I just can't!"

"Why not?" He was almost screaming, his face crestfallen, his expressions begging, tear jerking.

"Audrick, the reason you can't be in love with me is because I've got cancer."

And I'm not sure what was scarier. The expression on his face, or the ugly tears sending me into a fit on mine.


	31. The One With the Problem Chapter

**Jezi, I know you asked me not to change anything but...I had to. It's nothing big, not at all, but just some things that I need for reference later in the story. You dig? :)**

**Hayway, love you guys, please enjoy!**

**God bless!**

**~Hannie**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Tommy POV:<strong>_

I watched from across the dining pavilion as Chelsea made her way to her father at the Cabin 3 table. I couldn t stop thinking about her. About her eyes, about her face. "Dude," Mark called my name, kicking me under the table.

"W-what?" I said, shaking my head, coming back to my table.

"Your head was in the, should I say, sea-foam?" Mark said with this evil glint in his eye. I was about to kick him back when Paulette put him in a choke hold.

"I think it's cute!" she said. "Little Tommy's got himself a girlfriend!"

"Shut up, guys!" I said, my cheeks getting warm. "She's not my girlfriend…" _Yet_, I added in my head. Then one of the younger girls perked up.

"Oh, my gods! What will dad think?" Lucy said with a gasp. "What with your little friend being the sum of Percy Jackson, and all? I mean, from what I heard didn't Percy pick a huge fight with him? And w-" she was cut off by Mark as he threw his hand over her mouth.

"Shh!" He said sharply, "We don t say that. We can't say that. He'll cream us! Oh, crap. I'd completely forgotten about that incident. . . What will Ares say when he finds out - rather, what will he say if he finds out? When he finds out I'm in lo- no not quite love, but it's close. Very close. Paulette laughed again. I glared at her.

"You've got that goofy look again," she said smacking my arm. "Good luck, dude."

Chelsea wanted to fly with the Pegasi today, so she suggested I meet her over there. On my way to the stables, I saw this boar run deep into the forest. So what did I do? I followed it, that's what I did. I probably should've thought that through first, but I guess the Ares blood in me told me to go for it. I followed the boar through the woods until it disappeared into a burst of flames in this little clearing.

If you thought that was something, just wait, it gets better. At least, if by better you mean seeing your grandfather (who you know has a problem with your girlfriend's father) leaning against a motorcycle with sunglasses that appear to be almost melting right on his face appears five feet from you, then yeah, it got better.

"Thomas!" He said gruffly, crossing his burly arms. "What are you doing?"

I stood my ground; children (or even grandchildren) of Ares weren't supposed to back away from bullies, or the like, but stand up for yourself.

"I'm on my way to the Pegasus stables. Surely you don t leave Olympus just to make sure your grandson doesn't get lost. I've been to camp before, Ares."

"Now, listen, you know what I'm talking about. I won't have anyone directly descended from me having anything to do with that Jackson punk and his family, I don t care if he is the Savior of Olympus or whatever. Jackson is a self-absorbed jerk, and his family's going to be the same. You understand?"

"No. No I don't," I said simply, starting to feel the anger bubbling up now. "Look, just because you lost a fight - what was it? Almost 30 years ago? Why does that affect me? How even? It's not my fault you were pig-headed. Dad was right; you do need to cool off sometimes."

"How dare you!" Ares bellowed, his voice booming through the trees.

"Another thing," I smiled softly. "Chelsea's not her dad. She didn't beat you herself. Though, believe me when I say this: she definitely could, and she wouldn't have to do it alone. Grandfather or not, I'll take you on any day, any time when you challenge someone close to me."

"Hah! As if you could take me," Ares chortled, the air around him getting hotter as if the fire in his eyes (he'd taken off his sunglasses at some point during our argument) was getting too wild to control. A little runt like you? You're only a quarter bit of Hermes, punk, and only a quarter of me. What are you going to do?"

"I'd love to show you sometime, but right now, there's a girl waiting for me," I said, starting to walk back toward the stables.

"Oh, so you think you can just walk away from an immortal, punk? From a god? You just don t get it do you?"

I looked at him, well, more like glared. "I don t know what you're trying to do here," I said slowly. "But get out of here before we both do something stupid." This time I turned my back and walked away.

"You'll regret this, you little brat," Ares yelled after me. "You're going to wish you never said that."

_Maybe someday, but not today,_ I thought to myself. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, I caught a glimpse of Mr. Jackson, jogging behind me, trying to catch up. "Tom! Wait up. You got a sec?"

"Please, Mr. Jackson, not right now," I practically begged, turning around to look at him. "I've already been yelled at once, isn't that enough for one day?

Percy chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "Not if you ask Annabeth," he said. "Look, I just wanted to let you know that I'm fine with you having, uh…_feelings_ for my daughter and all. But trust me on this," his smile faded, and he got this hard-ice-rock-ness in his eyes. "She's only eleven, and if you hurt her in any way, shape or form, I'm going to have to hurt you."

"Trust me, Mr. Jackson," I said earnestly, "I would never do anything to hurt Chelsea. I just want her to be happy. And right now that means being with her at the stables so, please?" I gestured to the stables and he chuckled.

"Go on, Tommy," he said. "Just - be safe, okay?"

I nodded and went on my way, thinking how on earth could this day get any worse?

I shouldn't have thought that. Next thing I knew, I was looking at Chelsea, smiling and laughing, but who was that with her? Something or another, a son of Apollo. The loser. He had brown hair, with gold eyes, and tan skin. He was one of the ones who lead the campfire sing-a-longs. I'd seen him around, a lot of the Aphrodite girls would fawn over him and how perfect he was. He was leaning against one of the stable doors patting a silvery-blue Pegasus.

I didn't know what to do. I'll admit it, I panicked. I had to steady myself before going inside. I thought she liked me, but maybe I was reading the signs wrong. Maybe she only wanted to be better at archery for this kid. Oh, dad, what do I do? I cried out in my head. I walked into the stable and gave Chelsea a smile.

"Oh, hey, Tommy!" She said, giving me a hug. "I take it you've met Clark, right? Clark, this is Tommy, Tommy this is Clark. He's really funny. Tell him about that one time with the Cabin 9 kids, Clark!" She said with a giggle. I forced a smile.

"As much as I'd love to hear a good joke, I was really hoping you could give me some pointers on the Pegasi, Chelsea," I said, reaching toward the reigns of this black and gray spotted one.

"Well, for starters, you might want to watch where you put your fingers," she said, reaching out to stop my hand as I almost poked my steed in the eye. "Grab the reign here, right along it's cheek, and lead it out into the open. Here, watch me take Windsong out."

Windsong was one of Blackjack's colts. She was a chocolate-moose brown, and had some of the brightest eyes. She was like Chelsea's second mother, calling her "Princess" all of the time, though I wouldn't figure that out until much later.

Watch her I did. Everything she did was beautiful. The way she held the reigns as she lead her Pegasus out of the stable. The way she talked to her. The way her hair glinted in the sunlight. "Yo, Tommy, you might want to grip your reigns a little tighter. Here, like this," the annoying son of Apollo said, as he showed me how to properly grip the reigns.

"Sheesh, dude, I'm just walking it out of the stable, not to the beach and back." I snapped, starting in the direction that Chelsea went.

"Hey! Be careful!" He shouted, the sarcasm venom flicking off of his tongue. Then I heard him mutter under his breath, "This is gonna be good." He followed me out into the sunlight.

Chelsea had Windsong standing by the stable waiting patiently, to me it seemed as though the Pegasi would obey this girl's every word, and she was only eleven. She saw me tramping out and her face looked a little worried. "Hey, Tommy, calm down a little, you're making Max anxious. Anxious Pegasi are not good to anyone." I tried to loosen up, I really did. I don t think it made much difference though.

"Here, let's get flying," she said, patting Max's saddle. I climbed onto his back and waited patiently (or so I'd thought) for Chelsea. But as Chelsea was almost on, I saw Clark hop onto a brown and white Pegasus, and gallop around the stable, then take off. The thing that made me notice was that Chelsea was watching him.

"What you've got to do is start him, is start at a trot and work him to a gallop. He'll spread his wings when he's ready to fly," she said, finally looking back at me at the end. "When Max spreads his wings, he'll want confirmation that you're ready, so when you're ready to hit the skies, squeeze with your legs, okay?" I nodded.

I watched as she did what she said and then I was off. Max started at a gallop and went faster from there, he spread his wings really early too. I squeezed and the next thing I knew was that Max was in the sky and I was dumped on the ground, a few feet from a pile of manure. I heard a couple laughs coming from overhead as I pulled myself off the ground. Chelsea greeted me with Max in tow.

"Max says you need to not squeeze so hard at the start," she said with a shy smile. I looked at her.

"Wait," I said. "What do you mean when you say Max says?"

She looked sheepish. "I mean, that Max wants you to be a little softer with your touch to start with. And he says you need to keep a tighter grip on the reigns. Otherwise you _will _end up in the manure."

"So, what? You're talking to Pegasi now?" I asked, getting a little annoyed.

"I didn't think it was that weird. My dad talks to Pegasi, fish, and naiads all the time," she said looking a little hurt. "I didn't know it would bother you…I mean, I know I'm a little strange and all, but I think think…"

Truthfully, it wasn't bothering me. It was just the fact that she could do something so spectacular and I couldn't. What could I do? Fight? Not as well as my cabin mates. I wasn't a good thief or a runner. I was just me. She doesn't deserve me.

"It doesn't bother me," I finally said as I mounted Max again. "Let s try again." I nudged Max a little easier this time and lucky me he went slower. As he got up to speed he spread his wings and I squeezed with my legs. And just like last time, I was flung to the ground as he shot into the sky. I heard Clark's laugh coming from the air, and soon it was right behind me.

"Maybe Clark could show you a few tricks," Chelsea said quietly as I stood up and brushed the dirt off me.

"No," I said, probably a little too quickly. "I can do this."

After five more attempts (which resulted in five more failures) I decided I'd just wait for Chelsea. I gladly watched from the ground as she swooped through the clouds and still came out dry. I guess it's just a Poseidon thing.

By the time she landed I knew what I had to do.

Chelsea POV:

I felt really bad for Tommy, but he wasn't accepting my advice from Max, and really, Max wasn't the right Pegasus for him. Clark took Wafer, and Wafer is the easiest Pegasus to ride. Well, they're all really easy to ride for me, but you know what I mean.

_Don t worry 'bout it, Princess,_ Windsong said. _I don t think he was thinking straight. _I shrugged.

"Come on, Wind, let's get you taken care of, then I'll go see what's bothering him." My face downcast, I took Windsong back to her room, and gave good ole Blackjack a pet on the snout.

_How are ya, Boss Kid? _He asked, neighing happily. I laughed and smiled.

"I'm…I'm okay."

_Boss ain't flown me around lately. How's ya mom?_

"Sick," I said. "Though, I have a different theory. A couple of weeks ago, they both stayed up late until about, oh, I don't know, two AM?"

_What're you gettin' at?_

_"_I think she's pregnant, personally," I smiled, holding out a handful of sugar cubes for him.

Blackjack sighed. _I remember when the wife got pregnant, my oh my what a time. _

_It resulted in me, though, _Windsong chimed in. _It was worth it, right? _

_Ask your mother, not me! _

As I was finishing up the duties that every demigod must do who uses the stables, Tommy came walking up. "Hey, Chelse," he said with a shy smile. "Sorry I wasn't a good flier, I guess there's a reason I'm not over here that often. Can we go for a walk?" He asked quickly.

"Um, sure, I guess," I said, a little worried by his tone, but he'd probably shake it off once we were away from the stables. I gestured for him to lead and he took my hand.

We walked in silence for a few minutes. We walked to the river (yes, that means through the woods) and turned to walk toward the beach. We talked about Camp Half-Blood. About how I had wanted to learn more, Dad said that I didn't need to come here to train, but I still wished I could, so every chance I got to learn more about this place I grabbed at it.

He told me about the times he'd failed the rock wall and the times he'd completed it. The times when he s seen the Oracle come out and give a prophecy for a quest. He'd never been on one, but has seen what can happen on one.

But then he stopped. He turned to look at me with this pleading look in his eyes. "I don t think I can do this, Chelsea," he said quietly.

I looked at him, confused. What was he talking about? "I don t understand," I said.

"This!" He said, swinging our hands out as if it were obvious. "I can't do _this_! I'm not good enough for you, and plus, we're only kids. You re only 11 and I'm 13. We can't do this right now, Chelsea. I've got to focus on training."

I stood there, completely brainless, and dumbstruck. I didn't know what to say. I, well I really liked him. Still do! What am I saying?

"If you're having trouble, go ask Clark to help you out," he said stiffly and then he stalked away without another word.

I just stared after him, feeling as if I'd lost someone, someone so dearly special. I felt tears spring up in my eyes and I decided to make a run for the water, one of the places where I truly felt at home. I ran to the beach, tore off my over-shirt (yes, I have on a swimsuit. So what?) and dove into the surf. This couldn't be happening to me. Not here. Not now.

I stayed down there, crying my eyes out for I don t know how long. It seemed like eternity was too short when I was greeted by none other than Moon.

"What do you think you're doing down here?" She asked softly. I looked up at her from where I was hugging my knees on the ocean floor. "Oh, is that why?" She asked as I sniffed.

"He-he left me," I said quickly. "He was my only friend." I said, breaking down again. Just when I thought the waterworks were over.

Hayley quickly enveloped me in a hug. Something I didn't see coming. But she sat there holding me while I cried even more. Then when I finally was able to turn off the faucet she turned me to look her in the eye. "I'm sure there's something at work here. Tell me everything he said."

So I told her everything that happened, and as I got to the end she shook her head. "Of course he would say those things! He's jealous." She said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Then she rubbed her arms. "It's getting cold down here. What say we continue on land?" We swam to the shore and I plopped down by a sand dune.

"What do you mean, he's jealous?" I asked incredulously.

"He's probably feeling inadequate and jealous. Think about it," she continued when I stared at her, uncomprehending. "When he walked into the stables, who was with you?"

"Clark, but-"

"And who laughed at him when he fell off?"

"Well, Clark and I, but-"

"Then what happened when you suggested him watch Clark?"

"He got upset but-"

"But nothing! Don't you see? How blind are you? As for feeling inadequate, look at what you can do: Talk to Pegasi, breathe underwater, talk to fish, fly like crazy. The poor kid's probably feeling completely worthless next to that. I mean, he's a kind descendent of ARES."

"But – he's not inadequate at all," I said. I'm the one that doesn't deserve him, he's so sweet, and kind, and gentle and…" I trailed off, feeling tears spring to my eyes again.

"You need to go talk to him," Moon said, standing up and brushing the sand off her shorter, more airy skirt. "Go talk to him, then invite him to the fireworks."

"But- "

"Enough with the buts!" She said. "GO! Come on, I'll walk you to the cabins."

PercyPOV: (Oooh goody!)

It d been a pretty quiet day after seeing Ares and Tommy in the woods. I d told Annabeth all about it and later requested for Moon to be on the lookout for her sister once I d seen Tommy walking to his cabin looking sulky.

"Whoa, Tommy, you okay?" I called out. Annabeth had warned me that kids ll do crazy things if their confronted and told that they have to do the opposite if their in love. Her being a daughter of Athena whose mother told her to stay away from me, I trusted her completely.

"Hey, Mr. Jackson," he said quietly. "Yeah, sure, I m okay. I think," he said.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked. "I may be known as a seaweed brain, but I ll do my best to help you." That got a little smile out of him.

"I guess it couldn t... well, then again, you re not going to hurt me, right?" He asked, cringing.

I shrugged, "I m not going to make any promises, but let s have it out." So he told me all about his day, and his run in with Clark and what happened on his walk _with Chelsea. I knew he would hurt her, she doesn t deserve him,_ I couldn t help but think. What I said though was, "So what s your next step? You know she s just a friendly person, she just wants friends right now, can you simply be that for her right now? Can you be okay with her trying to be friends with others?"

He looked thoughtful for a minute. "I - I m not sure what to do now Mr. Jackson. I think I do just need to be friends, but haven t I completely ruined that chance?"

"The worst thing you can do is give up," I told him. "Annabeth had a hard time choosing between me and this other guy, but in the end she chose me. I think one of the reasons why was because I never gave up on her."

He looked a little better after that. "But what now?"

" You re in luck, Tommy. Do you know what tonight is?"

His eyes lit up. "Of course! The Fireworks! Why didn t I think of that?" Then his face fell. "Will she go with me after what I did?"

I smirked. My paternal instincts were hoping she would say no. She is my baby girl after all. But deep down, I knew the truth. "If she wants to keep you as a friend then she will. But my daughter s no fool, hurt her again, and you won t come out unscathed." His face brightened and he nodded sincerely.

"Yes, sir!" He said. We parted ways and he went to the showers. That s when I saw Moon.

She had that look in her eye like she d just accomplished something spectacular.

"Why, yes I have indeed, father," She said running up to me and giving me a hug.

"I take it things went okay with Chelse?" I asked.

"It didn t at first, but, after a bit I worked it out of her," she shrugged, still smug. "What can I say? Aphrodite should thank me though, I m helping her out. I wasn t sure about Chelark, but Tomsea? Definitely will work out, Aprhodite willing."

I shivered when I thought of what Aphrodite was capable of. Never underestimate the power of love.

Moon smiled and shrugged. "You would know, right Dad?" She said, leaving me to hang out with Ellie and the Stolls.

Chelsea POV: (Is it just me or are there a lot of POV switches? *shrug* Hope you guys don t mind ~Jezi)

I wiped my nose off for the millionth time today and looked at my face in the mirror. I couldn t believe I was about to do this. It was about half-an-hour before line up for dinner and I was going to swallow my nerve and go talk to Tommy.

As I left the Poseidon Cabin I saw Tommy waiting for me with a bouquet of blue and yellow flowers. "I m sorry," we both said at the same time. Then I gestured for him to go first.

"I m sorry," he said again, " I was put under a lot of pressure this morning from Ares, something about an old grudge between him and your dad, and I tried not to let that get to me, but then you were hanging out and having a lot of fun with Clark, and I thought, well, I thought that maybe you liked him more than me. So I got upset, and -" I silenced him by wrapping my arms around him.

"Tommy! It s okay," I said. "He really did have this great joke, and I don t really have many friends at home. It s just nice to hang out with demigods. I can be myself. I m really sorry if I made you feel inadequate, you are perfect just the way you are." This time he just looked at me with a beaming smile on his face. We stepped back for a second and he held out his hand.

"Friends? He asked, and I took his hand immediately.

"Always," I said. The thought of the night before ran through my mind, but I subdued it. Friends was better than nothing, I guessed.

_All in due time, love, _a sweet voice said in my mind. _All in due time. _

"So, do you want to - um. . . What I m trying to say is. . . Chelsea, will you go to the Fireworks with me?"

I grinned. "Definitely!" We hung out together until we had to separate for dinner.

I caught Moon s eye as she walked out of the Athena _Cabin. Thank s sis,_ I thought. She grinned and gave me a thumbs up.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: Holy cow!<strong>_

_**Wow, that was so long. But I couldn t make it any shorter if I tried. *sigh* Anyway, I hope you liked this! The Fireworks will be coming later (probably by Future, rather than me). I would ve added them in this chapter but it s already got 3,816 words. 0.0 That s really long in my book.**_

_**Thank s for reading though! If you liked this, I hope you ll check out my story filled with chapters I ve written for other authors as fillers. :D PM me if you have requests for oneshots, or if you have specific flames, or comments, that way I get them directly. Thank you!**_

_**~Jezebel Raewin**_


	32. Fireworks Part One

**DaughterofNike16 - I totally understand what you mean by that. They were acting a little old for their age, but I can't honestly say that it was the worst thing for a eleven/twelve and thirteen year old to do, if they're mature enough. And let's face the depressing fact; we have toddlers today who are being shoved into beauty pageants looking like hookers with flippers and hair pieces and fake eyelashes, overly tanned bodies, and clothes that even Lady Gaga or Madonna would wear. **

**I don't mean any of this negatively, I'm just stating the facts. I hope you're not mad at me, 'cause I love you like a friend, hon. :)**

**Nevertheless...**

**I don't own PJO, God bless, and hope you enjoy. :)**

**~Future**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV:<em>**

I coughed as the last of the putrid vile escaped me, leaving me to only heave up air.

"This is just about to get annoying," I sighed, leaning back against the wall. Percy sat on his knees next to me, smoothing my hair back behind my ears and tying it in a low pony tail.

"I think it's getting worse. Do we need to go on and leave?" He put his hand to my forehead, and I pushed it away. "You feel warm," he said, a slight glare in his eyes.

"I'm fine," I said, nausea still floating in my stomach. "I'm just…"

"_Sick_," he finished for me. "Wise Girl, honestly, it would be no trouble to leave. We could leave the kids here and take you to the doctor, and then I'll come back and get them after the fireworks,"

"No," I said harshly. "I'm not going to miss the fireworks. I'll be fine. I just need to get my head clear. I might go out on the water in a bit, as it does help to calm me." I smiled. "Now, go on, get out of here, check on 'em and get some dinner."

"You're not coming?"

I smiled and rolled my eyes. "I don't think it'd be smart for me to eat, Seaweed Brain. Okay? Love you," I kissed his cheek. "Now, shoo! I need to clean myself up."

I gave an award winning smile, which he appeared satisfied with.

"I'll check on you in a while," he said, walking out of the bathroom, and I sighed a sigh of relief.

I had to tell him. I had to tell him and there was no way around it.

Looks like I wasn't the only Athena daughter keeping secrets.

Suddenly, the door opened again, and I sighed. "Percy, I asked you to – Audrey?"

His nose was red, his eyes puffy, and he sat down next to me in the stall, sniffling, tears running down his cheeks. "She-she-she has can-can-cancer."

He looked at me hard in the eyes. "Why didn't you te-tell me?"

"I –" I started, when I realized that I didn't have an answer. "We just…we just didn't want to hurt you…"

"It's going to hurt me no matter who tells me!" He shrieked. "Whether it was you or Dad or Chiron or Jamie! It was going to hurt no matter what!"

He stood and stomped off. "Audrick!" I called after him, but he didn't listen. I closed my eyes and leaned back against the stall. "Zeus, why did I tell him to leave?" I said.

Percy was pretty good when it came to Audrick, when I was the clueless one, not that he could understand Hayley whatsoever. But with Audrick and Chelsea I'd always been clueless. In fact, he was the one to first figure out that Chelsea was allergic to cheese and chocolate, or that Audrick didn't like Johnny Cash but Chris Tomlin. Cheerios were a no with Audrick; Chelsea was addicted to peanut butter and Beethoven gave her a headache but she listened to him anyway.

I'd have never known that without Percy. Without him, I never would've been able to guess at the hints Chelsea was dropping about her period starting, or that Audrick liked a girl named Kellie in fourth grade. Which leaves the question; where would I be without Percy?

I coughed and opened my eyes, puking yet again into the toilet.

I hoped I'd understand this one. I really did.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Percy's POV:<em>**

I left the bathroom as Annabeth had told me to, going on my search for Hayley. It was a few minutes after I'd ran into Tommy on his way to the Dining Hall with Chelsea.

I'm not sure how I felt about him, but he wasn't anything like Clarisse, so I trusted him.

Barely.

Walking around the camp, I smiled warmly to myself, thinking and reminiscing in all the good times we'd had there.

Hayley learned to swim here on the fourth of July nearly seventeen years ago. I had still been an eighteen year old twenty years ago.

Sometimes, you forget just how fast time passes. It felt just like yesterday I was proposing to Annabeth, or going house searching.

That was a memory I was particularly fond of, and it engulfed me, dancing before my eyes, the vision of a melting road to my side.

…

_The car horn honked outside of my apartment, and I looked up drowsily. 7:18…on a Saturday? "What?" I asked as if she could hear me, to which she only responded with another honk of the horn. _

_"Coming!" I screamed, and she either heard me or was tired of giving everyone, including herself, a head ache. Dragging on a dirty pair of jeans, some clean socks, my shoes and a short sleeved tee, I walked down the stairs and prayed for the best. _

_"Yes?" I asked, coming to her Honda. _

_"We're going house hunting, remember?" she asked my playfully, cocking an eyebrow. "Or did poor little Seaweed Brain forget?" She added in a child-like mocking voice._

_"I didn't forget," I said. "I just…" it was useless, so instead I smiled and pecked her lips. I slid over the hood of her car (which I knew she would hate) and hopped into the passenger side._

_"I hate it when you do that," she confirmed, turning up the radio. I smiled._

_"Where to, Miss?"_

_"To the stars," she replied softly, grinning from ear to ear. Annabeth had fallen in love with the movie Titanic, and I'm not going to lie and say I didn't enjoy watching it. It's a great film, and I'm a sucker for a tear-jerker._

_For Annabeth's sake, I mean. _

_I buckled my seatbelt as she pulled out of the apartment buildings and set off down Main Street. "Seriously, though," I said, "where are we looking for houses at?"_

_"I'm thinking a country house or two, then maybe we'll take a tour of some condos. Rachel's excited to be our guide," she smiled, and I remembered then that Rachel had decided to become a real estate agent/interior designer, and she got paid a good amount for doing it, too. _

_"I like the sound of a country home," I said, and she gave me an odd look. "What?" I asked defensively. _

_"Well, you just seem more of a city boy type, Old Percwee," and she laughed. Ellie, Katie and Travis' daughter, had started calling me that the moment she could talk (and it's not like she could say much). _

_"Naw, Annie," I leaned across to her seat so I was closer to her. "I've always dreamed of whistling out the back door and yelling, "Well doggies!"." _

_She laughed loudly, shoving me, and I laughed, even though it kind of hurt my ego. _

_Annabeth was a big fan of The Beverly Hillbillies and used to make me watch reruns with her all the time. I didn't mind; it gave me something to do and I got to get out of the house while Mom and Paul cared for the new baby, Emily. _

_I loved Em and all, I really did and do, but I couldn't stand to hear her scream all the time and know that I couldn't do anything about it. _

_But she was all grown up now, well, at least she was now a fraction of my age. _

_"So, country house first?" she asked me. I nodded and grinned, staring at the collage of road to my right. _

_…_

_"Rachel!" Annabeth smiled and wrapped her in a hug. They'd become friends some time ago, one year when we were visiting back at camp, about twenty years old or so. _

_"Annie," Rachel laughed. "It's good to see you, too. Percy." She nodded to me and I nodded back. Rachel and I weren't as good as friends as she and Annabeth were, but we were okay. We still talked sometimes, usually on a visit to camp, and she'd tell me about her art and how her studies at the Art Institute are going, what prophecies had been given at camp, any new quests, etc., etc. _

_"Rachel." I meet her eyes, and she grinned, and then led us inside. She was an intern at a real estate firm, and they were testing her skills out in the field. _

_"So, this house was built in 1934 by some returning soldiers. Their families lived here for generations. It's been renovated inside and out by the previous owners, and they're ready to sell. The most historical markers are still intact, which I thought would interest Annabeth a lot."_

_Annabeth ran her hand across an old nightstand, and then looked to me. I was still mesmerized by the entirety of the place. It was made completely of wood, with creaky floorboards that sounded like home. Artifacts decorated every inch of the place, even a framing of an early nineteen hundreds portrait of someone named John Harold, which I guessed was the soldier's father. _

_I could just imagine him, sitting there, smiling proudly, and imagining his own son in the war, fighting for America and its freedom from communism. _

_"Percy?" Annabeth snapped in front of my face. _

_"It's-it's amazing," I stuttered, shocked at being drawn out of my world. I glanced at Rachel. "How much?" _

_"Well, it's, uh…let me show you the rest of the house first." She said, giving a completely false smile. It's a good thing she dropped out of law school. She wouldn't make a good lawyer. _

_We smiled back, though, following her up one flight of stairs out of what seemed like hundreds. _

_"That means it's expensive," I whispered to Annabeth about halfway up the staircase, acting like I was fanning money. _

_"Well, duh, Seaweed Brain," she laughed quietly. "I never said I was a cheap girl." She winked, and I held in my laugh. _

_Rachel showed us the master bedroom (which needed some **major **renovations. I thought she'd said it was remodeled. When, that should've been my next question), followed by the master bath and two extra bedrooms on that floor. There was a nursery built in on the third floor, with three cribs already installed. _

_I'll be the first to admit that it wasn't catching my eye, any of it. Nothing just seemed to **fit. **It was all wrong, all not Annabeth and me. The cribs installed, well, that just took away the fun of buying our own, if we had kids of course. Plus, the house was much too big. _

_Maybe Annabeth was right. Maybe I am a bit of a city boy. However, I'd rather live in a crowded apartment than a four-floor, story, whatever house with too many breakable artifacts. _

_I didn't earn the nickname Seaweed Brian for nothing. _

_A few minutes later, after being shown the kitchen, dinning room, living room and den, Rachel finally led us back to the front door and clasped her hands, smiling approvingly. "Well," she said, "what do ya think?"_

_Annabeth and I exchanged a glance. "It was –"I began, but Annabeth stopped me. _

_"It's just a little too much," Annabeth said exactly what I was going to. "We need something a bit smaller, a two, maybe three story. A little closer to the city is what we need. Goode Elementary and the high school are too far away from us. And, for another thing, Percy and I are so clumsy we'd end up breaking everything in here."_

_She smiled at me. _

_Sometimes it amazed me at how good Annabeth was at correlating with my emotions. It made me feel almost special, in a childlike way. _

_Rachel sighed, relieved. "Good. I wouldn't be able to **stand **painting in a place like this. If you hire me to paint, not saying that you will but – ugh, never mind."_

_Annabeth smiled. "If we ever need something done with a really steady hand, I'll give you a call. So, the next house?"_

_"Right, right!" Rachel said, scurrying us out of the door. "This next one, it's perfect! Ooh, no, wait, it's so perfect we're going back to the city first and looking at the condo there and **then **we'll go to the perfect one!" _

_She spoke so fast I'd barely enough time to even organize it in my brain. _

_She'd drove us with the company's vehicle, so we got in the back seat and Rachel got in front, starting up her engine and clicking her seatbelt into place. Rachel took off before I even closed my door. _

_We arrived at the condo maybe twenty minutes later. It was huge, I'd give it that. Had a full balcony with which you could see half of Manhattan. It was spacious and the kitchen was wonderful. The furniture was top of the line, and the kitchen was already stock piled with all the necessary items. _

_Annabeth fell in love immediately, her eyes gleaming with hope. Was this the house? Could it be?_

_"How much is it a month?" I asked Rachel, opening the fridge. Not to find something to eat, but to think. I had to be the only person that ever did that. It helped, though, so what could I be angry about? _

_"About, um…" she bit her lip and twirled her hair. _

_"Rachel…" I said slowly. _

_"It's about three thousand a month, give or take a thousand…maybe two…" _

_I looked at Annabeth. Her heart was crushed. "We don't have the money, with the wedding and all…" I trailed off as she broke her glance with me and stared hard as a rock at the ground. _

_I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. "Let's see the next one," I tried to say in an upbeat voice. I failed horribly. "I'm sure it'll be better than this one."_

_Annabeth didn't seem so sure, and her look was ice cold as she followed Rachel out of the condo complex. _

_The car ride was short and dreadfully boring. The radio stopped working, and we had only a light fuzz as company. Annabeth sat with her arms crossed, glaring crossly at the seat. _

_"Annie," I tried to reason, "it's just that we don't have that kind of money."_

_"We could," she spat. _

_"Yeah, you know, if we didn't have to eat or needed to bathe or to have electricity." _

_"It's not my fault we need those things." _

_I resisted the urge to snort. _

_Annabeth sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just thinking about something."_

_"What?"_

_She bit the tip of her thumb. "Well, it's just, the future, I guess. I've been having this weird dream and…" she avoided my gaze and turned to face the house we were parked in front of. Her frown turned into a wild, Leo-Valdez-worthy grin, and she jumped from the car to get a better look. _

_"We'll take it!" she said, and I knew she meant it. _

_It wasn't bad, either. There was a pool in the backyard, a gorgeous upstairs and attic, a basement fully equipped with man-cave qualities, the kitchen made Annabeth die and the master bedroom was sheer genius. It was as if Athena herself had built this. _

_That wasn't even the best part. It was only 115,000, after taxes, just under out budget of 125,000. That left us money to buy new furniture and still have enough to pay our first month's bill. _

_"Where do we sign?" She asked Rachel, clicking a pen. _

_Rachel beamed. "Yes! My first sale. You'll have to come back to the office with me, and I'll contact the owner with your negotiations, and you should have an answer within the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours."_

_Annabeth's face was that of a small child standing under the Christmas tree on Christmas morning before her parents got up; the anxiety of wanting to know what was under the decorative wrapping. _

_A sparkle danced in her eyes, and the sight of a melting road reflected in her irises. _

_…_

The vision melted back to reality, Chiron standing in front of me. Night had fallen fast, and the stars twinkled in the sky.

"Percy? You're awfully far into the forest."

So I hadn't stopped walking.

"I was thinking," I said simply, turning on my heels.

"I think you're forgetting something." Chiron held up a card and pushed it into my hands. "Give this to Annabeth for me." I felt the card questioningly and a sickening realization hit me. "Now, get going, you're going to miss the fireworks."

I took off without another word.


	33. Short Sweet and to the Point

_**I'm thinking,honestly, about discontinuing. We'll know for sure next chapter. I've just lost all inspiration, I've no idea where this story is going. I've gotten better since I started (praise God!), and I want to share THAT with you, not this. All of this good stuff is when they are older, when they're all married, all having kids. But until then...I just don't know. I've got nothing left. **_

_**Your thoughts?**_

_**Welp, hope you enjoy anyway. :)**_

_**Peace, Love, Praise and Worship, Play, Hope, and God bless!~**_

_**~Future**_

* * *

><p><strong><em>The Fireworks (3rd Person)<em>**

Looking out across the infinite valley, all lights died down. Dinner was over, as was singing, and as usual on the night of the fourth of July, fireworks were going to be held for all to attend, whether it be demigods, quarter-bloods, or magical creatures and Olympians. All were silent as they waited for the Stoll brothers to get things started, like they always had in the few short years they went there before leaving to start of new lives with each other.

A young girl, about seventeen, with long blonde hair sat with her friends, chatting amongst themselves, waiting for them to start. There was Elizabeth Stoll, Ellie they called her, to her right, and a young boy, Carter, to her left. He was two years young than her. One could tell by his slightly reddened face that this boy had a secret, not that anyone would ever know it seemed.

In another part of the hills and sand dunes, hidden on a blanket, Audrick Jackson sat, his knees pulled to his chest. _Cancer,_ he kept thinking. _Leukemia. Cancer. Death. She's dying. Cancer._ A young girl with frail blonde hair bit her lip as she walked towards him. Her feet scraped in the sand, her toes sinking deep into the grains, not that she minded. She felt free on the sand, like she could fly. The ocean was her home. She sat down, quiet as a mouse beside him.

"Beautiful night," she mused. "Perfect for fireworks. The stars are practically glowing."

"Yeah," he said sourly. He wiped a tear from his cheek. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

His voice was so soft she almost didn't catch it. "I was afraid. You were the only real friend I've had since Stephanie, and she's really not all that _friendly _per say. I didn't want to lose you like I've lost everything else. But I don't have a reason to be mad at my fate. I believe in the Olympians; my mother is one of them. I still think there's something bigger out there, though, and I've no reason to be mad at it. Don't give me a reason too, please."

She was desperate, he knew it from her voice. He still hadn't looked at her. If he looked at her, he was afraid of what he would see. Would it still be that beautiful girl with rosy cheeks and blonde hair, stormy grey eyes flecked with green that he had fallen in love with? Or would he see what everyone else saw? The girl with pale, pasty skin, the one who was dying, losing her long hair, her precious life?

"Look at me?" she asked quietly.

He finally managed to jerk his head that way. His jaw dropped.

She was prettier than before. She had such an inner beauty, somet hing that he hadn't seen before, and in that moment he pictured their entire life. He could see her walking down the aisle, he saw children and grandchildren, more marriages and growing old. He saw them sitting on their porch, buying that same house, he saw cars and small wrecks and damages that he'd have to repair.

No, he hadn't pictured. He had _saw_. She would be his, forever, he had to make sure of that. Surely she could see it, too.

Jamie gave a small smile. "There's my Audrick."

She laced her fingers through his, watching the horizon as the last tip of sun began to sink down.

Right in front of the tide, two friends sat, one a lover, one who wasn't sure. They were young, they knew that, but they also knew that this wasn't something you just found on an average summer day. This had to be more.

For now, though, they were content with being friends.

Like his mother had said, "Friends first, more later."

Disrupting the peace came running Percy Jackson, thirty-eight years of age, using everything that he had in him. He had managed to feel what the card had said. _Congratulations on your new edition. _Edition? He had asked himself. What could that be?

He knew, though, and he was afraid. He was afraid like any expecting father was. He was afraid for Annabeth. She was forty and gaining ground. Could she handle another pregnancy?

He feared for the child as well. What would happen if they died before he was even twenty? They were both growing older by the day, it seemed.

He guessed that in some ways he felt excited. A new child. That was brilliant, amazing even. A baby. Staying up all night, alternating diaper-changes and feedings between each other. And surely Audrick, Hayley and Chelsea would help out. What was there to worry about?

Still, the twinge was there, even as he ran by each separate group, stopping by Hayley's first.

"Hales, where's your mom?" he asked. His worried town and jumpiness gave it away.

"Uh, by the Southside, I think."

Percy nodded his thanks and took off in that direction. He almost stopped by to talk to Jamie and Audrick, but he knew that wasn't the right thing to do. From what he could tell, he was still pretty upset. Maybe he should have told Audrick. Maybe it was better that he hadn't.

He kept running.

Next he caught sight of the young lovers, forced himself not to gag. Percy didn't like them, not at this age. They needed to wait.

He kept running.

He ran and ran and ran, past many groups and many old friends. Grover tried to stop him at one point, but he shoved him off.

"Later, G-Man!" He yelled, and Grover laughed at that. Percy hadn't called Grover "G-Man" since their kids were born. It felt nice to him.

And then, after what felt like forever, he saw her. She saw him.

The last bit of light was shining through the edge of the trees next to the ocean. They shown on Annabeth, her skin glowing in the light. She looked like a goddess in her white, summery dress. Blonde curls cascaded down her back, and the grey which had grown in the last twenty-five years simply made her look even better.

Percy felt like he was melting again, even as he sat beside her and handed her the card.

"You're pregnant." He meant for it to be a statement.

She nodded. "Yep."

"You didn't tell me?"

"Couldn't bring myself. I didn't want you to worry. We're not as old as they're trying to make us, Perce."

"And who are _they _exactly?" he smirked.

She rolled her eyes and shoved him playfully. "You know, everyone. The kids. Katie and Travis Stoll. The world. I mean, Katie's forty-three, and Max is only two years old. If she can do it, I can do it and…"

Annabeth looked off to the side and bit her lip.

"Are you mad at me?"

Percy shook his head. "How could I be? I understand. Things happen and life moves on." He placed his hand on her still flat stomach. "We'll make it through this, just like we have three times before."

With a smile, the last of the light faded, and he leaned forward, kissed Annabeth passionately.

The fireworks sounded in the sky, exploding with a fiery light and passion; a startling soul and amazing feeling.

_Sure_, Hayley thought, examining her parents over on the horizon. _They aren't perfect. They never will be. But I can honestly say, I've never been more proud to be anyone else's kid. _

She turned back and watched the sky being filled with light.

_Now we are complete. _


	34. Sigh

_**So many confused thoughts, guys. **_

_**I'm going to leave a poll on my page. I encourage you to visit. I'm still so uncertain. **_

_**Pray that God helps me find a way through it. :)**_

_**Peace, Love, Nachos and above all GOD BLESS!**_

_**~Future**_


	35. An Epilouge

**_You asked for an epilouge. Here it is. _**

**_This will be told in about three or four parts, so bear with me for a bit. :)_**

**_Love, Peace, and God bless,_**

**_~Hannah_**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Ten Years Later<em>**

**_Hayley's POV:_**

Five years to the day I got married. Who could've guessed that I'd end up with Ellie's little brother, Carter? Once we got engaged, started dating even, I tried to stop calling Travis and Katie "uncle" and "aunt". I still couldn't.

Ellie died eight years ago. She had come over to study for a history test we had at the university, and the next thing we knew, BAM! She was hit head on by a drunk driver. None of us had taken it well, especially my mom. That had been her baby before I came along. She went into a depression, and the new baby…

Oh, that's right.

Another crash took another precious life not a year before Ellie's. Mom was about sixth months pregnant with soon-to-be Hallison Faith. Chelsea was in the passenger seat, rocking out to one of her favorite bands, Switchfoot. Mom was laughing at her as she swung her head back and forth and looked like she was having a seizure, dancing all crazy like that. She wasn't wearing her seatbelt.

Chelsea had continued and Mom looked straight ahead…and that's when it happened. She hadn't seen the eighteen-wheeler coming, and on a whim she threw one arm across Chelsea's chest and threw the car to the side, turning until the wheel wouldn't budge an inch. They were lucky to make it out with their lives. They barely missed the enormous truck, and instead crashed into a tree. They were pretty shaken up, Chelsea with a broken arm, a giant bruise across her forehead, and a concussion. She was blessed not to have more.

Mom was fine, completely healthy, save for a couple of scratches and a bruise where her arm had been crushed when the air bag flew out at Chelsea. The doctors checked her out, said everything was fine, then sent her home.

Or so we thought. The next couple of days, she felt pain that she described as worse than labor. She couldn't move from the bed, and though she never screamed, I saw the tear stains on her pillow. Finally, it became too much to bear and she demanded me to take her to the doctor. She didn't want Dad to; she didn't want him to see her in such a weak stage.

I drove her there, and once I helped her inside, she said she'd get a cab for the ride back home. I told her I would stay, but since when does my mother listen to reason? She commanded me to go home, and with that fire burning in her eyes, I wasn't about to argue, not to mention Carter and I had a date that night.

She walked in the door all slow like about an hour or two later. I was in the kitchen, but she couldn't see me, thank the Heavens. Instead, she collapsed on the couch.

"P-P-Percy?" her voice was shaky and totally un-mom like. I went to the opening from the kitchen to the living room and laid flat against the wall, peeking around so they wouldn't know I was there.

"Yeah?" Dad walked downstairs, skipping the last two, and walked towards Mom, checking his email with his iPhone. "Hey, I wanted to ask you about the – Annabeth? What happened?"

She was quiet, and even from my point of view she looked small. "I killed the baby." She whispered gently. Then she gazed up, tears pouring from her eyes. "I killed the baby, Percy. I killed the baby!"

I've never seen my mother cry the way she did right then. She was shuddering, and her words were uncomprehend-able as she thrust her arms forward and crashed into Dad's chest.

Nothing was the same after that, not for a while at least. Mom was calm, but jumpy and reserved. She didn't eat for months on end. She was in a chronic depression that seemed to never fade.

Six months later, Ellie was taken from our lives. She got even worse. I did, too, but I had to be Mom when she wasn't.

Then one day…I'm not sure what happened. She just ended it. She was up early one morning, making the one and only food she'd accomplished in twenty-five years: pancakes. She was whistling a soft tune and dancing around and eating strawberries as she cooked them. Her voice was sweet (well, as sweet as Annabeth Jackson's could get), and lively, and just so…her. Dad was just as happy and excited. He'd missed this version of mom, and soon they were swaying romantically in the kitchen, feeding each other the juicy fruit and being the lovey-dovey best friends that they were.

That got me thinking. Carter and I had been together since that night at the fireworks, when we discussed the topic of who or what "Carley" was, and Ellie pulled me aside to tell me how he liked me. He denied it, of course, and we weren't honestly "together", not for a while at least. We became best friends first and gradually the love came. I couldn't imagine my life without him. I was twenty-two, after all. I needed someone who was going to stay with me forever.

So, we did it. We tied the knot on his sister's birthday, and that next night – well, I'm not exactly sure what happened. Let's just say we didn't wait long for kids.

Hallie had been unexpected. She really had. We were on our third week of the honeymoon (we were on a cruise to Greece, go figure, right?), and I got so sick we had to take a plane home as soon as we arrived on the island.

Even more unexpected, though, was when we told Mom and Dad.

…And they told us about Luke.

My mom was forty-five years old, and she was pregnant. I at the time I could only compare it to Michele Duggar from _19 Kids and Counting. _Or maybe it was twenty-one now, I had no idea.

"You're – you're what?" I stuttered, and suddenly a scene from _Father of the Bride II _played in my mind.

Mom sighed. "It's a shock to us, too," she said softly. She rubbed her stomach gingerly. I saw the fear in her eyes, though she tried hard not to show it.

"Hey," I took her hand and held it. "Don't be worried. You wouldn't have been given another chance unless it was meant to be, you understand? Chin up. As Jamie says, there's something bigger out there."

Jamie.

Jamie Jackson, that's who she would become later on, about eight years after her and Audrick hit it off at the beach. So many times during that summer and year later, up till he was sixteen, he went to the hospital with her. He read to her at night and usually fell asleep next to her on the hospital bed. He brought games like Parcheesi and Sorry and Monopoly to play as she went through chemotherapy. She lost all of her hair, and for some time she was in so much pain she could hardly move without shedding a tear.

And then one day, they forced him out. They told him that she was going to die, had maybe ten weeks to live if they were lucky. She had stopped responding to treatments a while ago, but they had to keep trying. For some months, Audrick was stuck in a rut, constantly going back and forth to check on her. There was never a day when she wasn't constantly on his mind. He couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, couldn't think and couldn't talk until he knew Jamie was okay, even if just for that night. He would spend hours talking to her on the phone, even if we had school that next morning, and he loved to skip and go see her instead. He was an A+ student, what was it going to hurt? That is until our principal told him he was going to have to go to summer school if he missed anymore days.

Eight weeks into her ten-week-initative, they released her. Her father, who had become and poor and drunk over the years, had no means to take care of her, sent her out to live on the streets. Audrick took care of that real quick, and Mom had her moved in within the next day.

One Sunday morning, Jamie shuffled down the stairs. Audrick had been counting down the days. Three were left. A mere three. Still he had never seen anyone as beautiful as the once-had-been blonde coming down and smiling in a bright yellow, flowing dress.

"I want to try something," she said, quietly as if talking loud would hurt her. Maybe it did, we didn't know, and she wasn't one to just admit when she was in pain. We all practically whispered, too. We were all afraid. How could we not be?

"What's that," Audrick asked with a smile, standing and pulling out her chair as always. She nodded fragilely and took her seat next to him, cutting the warm pancakes Mom had made (the same day her depression had vanished).

"Remember how I've always there's – " she paused to swallow her pills with some orange juice – "something bigger out there?"

We all nodded.

"I want to see," she said plaintively. "I want us to try. You don't have to, but I think we should. And if not, Audrick, will you drive me? There's one right down the street. I'd do it myself, but in my condition…" she trailed off and stuck the fork in her mouth, chewing slowly and delicately. Sweat beaded on her forehead from the effort.

Audrick grinned, placed his hand over hers. "Of course I will. We all will, won't we?" he eyed each of us as if daring us to decline. None of us said a word. "Good. We'll be ready in ten."

I don't know what happened that day. We all got dressed in fancy clothes, and went to this little, small-town church I'd never seen before. Sure, I'd worn skirts and Chelsea had all of our lives because we thought they were cute and stylish. But something about stepping in there slapped me in the face, pounded on my chest, told me all that I had done wrong and made me want to beg forgiveness from it. We went through the service, and though the preacher was short, fat, old and scraggly, his voice was loud and proud, and he knew what he was saying. We had sung a few songs just before he'd gotten up on the platform behind the pedestal. Jamie knew all of them by heart. She stood and she sang, and wow, did she have one of the most beautiful voices I'd ever heard.

Prayer at the alters were called, and Jamie didn't hesitate to walk up there. She prayed and prayed and prayed, until finally the entire congregation was on their knees up there with her. I couldn't understand the language they were speaking, but I knew I wanted to taste it on my lips, too.

The service finally ended and we all went home. Chelsea smiled from the back of the van.

"I think we should go again on Wednesday."

"Good idea," Audrick smiled.

"Yeah," Jamie said. Suddenly her face fell and she smacked the side of her head. "Stupid! I've got a doctor's appointment today!"

"When?" Dad was driving.

Jamie checked the clock on the van's console. "In about thirty minutes."

"We'll just go together, then," Dad had treated Jamie gently since the day they first met. Now that she was his semi-daughter, he seemed even happier to be so.

Not much was said between us as we pulled into the hospital's parking lot. We filed out one by one and went with Jamie inside. Only one of us was allowed to go back with her, and it came to no surprise when Audrick was the first to shoot a hand towards the sky.

Twenty minutes later, Audrick came dashing down the hallways, circling this way and that, trying to find us. When he did, his face was completely ecstatic, and he was screaming at the top of his lungs. "It's gone!"

"What?" I knit my eye brows in confusion as he sprang forward and started bouncing up and down, his smile wide and immaculate.

"It's gone," he repeated. "It's gone, it's gone, it's gone, _it is gone_!"

"What is?" I had to yell to get his attention.

"The cancer," he sat down on a chair in front of us, smiled wide and clasped his hands together. "They don't have any idea where's its gone, but it _is _gone. They can't find a trace it. I'm not sure what happened at that church, but man was it something. Perhaps we _should _start believing in a higher power. I mean, how did the Olympians, Titans, all that get here unless something created them? There had to be something bigger and stronger and better than just Gaea and Uranus. Not a big black bird called a Nyx." He stood and started walking backwards towards the hallway. "It's gone," he grinned again. "It's gone."

He took off running in the opposite direction.

**_Present Time _**

**_Hayley's POV:_**

Things changed in my heart that day.

I didn't always believe in miracles. I thought that they were a dime a dozen, one in a million. I was wrong.

"Mommy!" An excited five year old ran from down stairs and threw herself into my lap. I smiled down and her and engulfed her in a huge hug, adorned her in kisses. She laughed and grabbed my face with two of the smallest hands I'd ever seen. She held them there and stared into my eyes. "No – more – kisses," she stated, to which I simply kissed her more and more, then tickled her until she laughed so hard she couldn't breathe.

"Where's mah Daddy?" she asked, crawling down from my lap and going to her art table in the middle of the living room. She wanted to be an artist one day, and I was sure she had the name for it.

Hallie Artemis Stoll. That's what we named her. I had her nine months after we were married. Mom had my baby brother Luke five days prior (even though our due dates were on the same day). Sometimes it still shocked me to think of myself as a Stoll. I was no longer a Jackson kid, part of the "Jackson Five" as Ellie used to say.

"He's at work," I stood and followed her into the kitchen, me walking around the island while she climbed up in a chair.

"What's a work?" She picked up her fork and smiled a toothy grin at me.

"Hmm…" I tapped my spatula as I turned on the griddle and strapped my apron on. They were a dying a fashion, which to me was all the more reason to own twenty-seven of them. "It's like when you go to school," I said, smiling.

"How come?" _How come _was her favorite saying. 'This is a rock', 'How come?'.

"The teacher makes you do things, right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Even if you don't want to?"

"Yeah! She makes us do ma'ff, Mommy. _Ma'ff. _I don' like ma'ff. The numbers float in my face."

Dyslexia skipped a generation, but it's still fifty percent dominant.

"_Math_," I corrected, pouring pancake batter unto the griddle.

"_Ma'ff_." She rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out. I did it back.

"You better start acting sick, kiddo, if you don't want to go to school today," I warned.

"It's nine o' five, Mommy. I can't go to school no-mores."

"I can check you in."

Her mouth formed an "O" and she gasped.

"I'll be a sick girl then, Mommy. Ah-hugh, ah-hugh." Her faking coughing was priceless.

I laughed and sat down beside her, two plates of pancakes for us to share. I'd sued bananas and strawberries to form a smiley face on hers. She looked at mine skeptically. "What?" I finally asked.

"Where's your smiley man, Mommy?"

"Hmm, I don't have a smiley man."

"How come, Mommy?"

"'Cause I don't need one."

"How come, Mommy?"

I gazed sideways, tilted my head, and tapped my chin. "Hmm, let's see…ooh, I know!" She grabbed her and pulled her into my lap, brushing her hair behind her ears. "Honestly, it's because I've got you right here with me. You're the biggest smiley man I could ask for."

She giggled. "But I' not a man, Mommy. I'm a _gurl_."

I pressed my lips unto her cheek, "I know, I know."

She crawled back over into her seat, started eating plaintively, before she gazed at me again. "Mommy?"

"Yeah, sweetie?"

"I don't need the smiley man, neither."

My heart swelled, and I laughed. "Come here," I tickled her until she couldn't breathe.

**_Some hours later_**

The door cracked open, and Carter walked in. Hallie looked up excitedly. "Daddy!" She dashed from her art table and wrapped herself around his leg. He laughed, then bent over and picked her up.

"Hey," he smiled in my direction. I nodded. He sauntered over and kissed me, and as he was pulling back, he whispered, "I've got something we need to talk about."

I gave him a weird look, but said nothing.

"You're home early," I mused, glancing at the old coo-coo clock we had in the living room. _We should probably get rid of that_, I thought absentmindedly.

_The thing we need to talk about, _he mouthed. I scorched my eyebrows together and finished Hallie's grilled cheese. I was all about using my griddle, and since Mom had never been one for cooking, I'd taken a head course in it at the university. I tried something new every night for a year. Everyone loved it, too, which was a bonus.

I'd thought about going into the cooking business, but Carter had quickly talked me out of it. Why, Heaven knows (though later I would find out that it was because Ellie had wanted to be a chef, and that would hit too close to home with him).

_Oh_, I mouthed back, placing the grilled cheese on a plate and setting it in front of Hallie. _Where do you want to talk? _

_Back porch a good place?_

_Sure. _

"Hal," Carter smirked at his daughter. "You remember that time me and you snuck away and hid where Mommy couldn't find us?"

Hallie swallowed her food and nodded.

"Mommy and I are gonna do that now, okay? We'll be back in a second. No peeking!" He poked her stomach for good measure. She laughed.

"Oh-kay, Daddy."

"Good," he kissed her forehead and ruffled her blonde hair, then led me outside. As expected, Hallie immediately abandoned her food and ran to catch us, but he shut the glass door with a smile. She still leaned her ear against it, trying hard as she could to hear.

"Your blood tests are back," he said quietly. I leaned against the porch rail and looked at my stomach.

"Oh." I paused. "And?"

"I think you need to look." He handed me his iPhone, which I took and opened his email. I scrolled through until I found the one from my doctor (we have her send it to both of us in case the other forgets to check ours), and I clicked on.

I choked when I read it.


	36. An Epilouge Part Two

**_THREE MORE PARTS TO THIS GUYS! CALM DOWN! :D I promise, we'll see what's going on with Tomsea, with Jamick, with Hayley and all the others. I promise. ;)_**

**_I just don't know what I'd do with a sequel (in answer to a few other reviews). It'd be exactly like this, not really anything exciting...I think I'm going to end it here. Sorry, guys. But I think you will all be satisfied by the ending. :)_**

**_Love, Peace, and God bless,_**

**_~Hannah_**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Following Day<em>**

**_12 PM_**

**_Percy's POV:_**

"What time is Hayley coming over?"

Annabeth bit an apple, thinking it over in her head. "Four I think," she replied. I took a moment to study her, hoping it would bring me out of my funk. I'd felt jumpy and shaky all day; I'd woken up in a cold sweat; my heart was thumping erratically, and a small pain throbbed in my chest.

She was still as gorgeous as the day she'd spoon fed me popcorn-pudding. Her blonde girls, though now thick with grey (she was turning fifty in a few months time), hung down her shoulders. Ever since Luke had been born, she'd rarely pulled her hair up. It just wasn't worth it anymore, she told me. I didn't think that, but I wasn't going to force her. Luke's birth had been complicated, to say the least, and even five years later she's still exhausted from it.

"MOOMMMYY! DAAADDDYYY!"

_Speak of the devil_, I thought, leaning down instinctively and scooping the five year old into my arms.

"What's up, pal?"

"D'ere's a spider in the baf'room, Daddy! A spider in the baf'room! Kill it, kill w'it Daddy!"

I smiled and rolled my eyes. He and Chelsea both had this irrational fear of spiders.

Honestly? I wouldn't have it any other way.

"Okay, okay," I set him back on the ground. "Take me to this nasty, mean spider."

"You got it, Daddy! You got it!" He ran back up the stairs before I could move two feet. I gave Annabeth a wild look, and she laughed at me.

"Do you remember when we had that much energy?"

"And a race to the sandbox branded who you were for life? Where girls went to college to get more knowledge and boys went to Jupiter to get more stupider? Yeah, I think I remember that."

"Ha-ha," she put down her book and leaned up so I could kiss her, and like any good husband I did.

Going for a run up the stairs, I was soon taken down from my pedestal. The moment I jumped the first two, my heart contorted like someone tied a knot around it. I grabbed the railing and dug my nails into it, using my other hand to press into that side of my chest.

I glanced around, hoping Annabeth hadn't noticed, but as I assumed she was lost in her novel.

I stood there for a few moments, trying to catch my breath. I suddenly felt like I was going to throw up. "DAADDDYY! Are you comin' or what?"

I swallowed the bile and put a tight smile on my face. "On my way, Luke!" I walked up the stairs slowly, still holding onto the rails for dear life.

**_3:15 PM_**

"I'm home!" twenty-two year old Chelsea yelled, coming in the door. She collapsed next to me on the couch and took her hair down, running her fingers through it.

"Rough day?" I mused. After lunch I'd started to feel a little better, but I wasn't great. Nausea still floated in my stomach, and I found it hard to swallow.

She groaned. "The _worst_. Mr. Pooper-goober, whatever his name is, said that we could use owls as our project. Our _photography projects. _I got a C- just because I used _one _of them, and it was an accidental photo I took for my own pleasure." She sighed again, closed her eyes. "Who knew photography class would be this hard?"

I shrugged. "It'll be worth it someday, kiddo. I promise." A small part of me still wondered if he'd done it yet. He'd asked me a couple of days ago, said he'd do it over dinner or maybe at a movie or something like that. But had he?

The _he _I'm referring to would be Tommy Rodriguez.

They weren't the best couple in the world, not by a long shot. They often argued and they broke up several times during their high school years. When they were together, they knew who they were. Chelsea was happy, which was something I seldom saw from this daughter.

I kept trying to get a look at her hand, but she would move it every time I got close to seeing.

Finally, I said, "Where's the ring?"

She seemed taken by surprise, though not the unexpected kind. Thought out. "What ring?"

I smiled faintly. "Let me see."

It was beautiful, for what Tommy could afford. He went into the engineering business. A small diamond perched on the top of it, though it couldn't have been but half a karat.

"It's not much, Daddy, but it's still perfect."

I nodded, and suddenly another spark of pain traveled through me. It shocked me so much I couldn't breathe for a few seconds.

Chelsea gave me a worried look. "Dad, you okay?"

I coughed, bobbing my head up and down. "Yeah, Seashell. I'm fine." I gave an award winning smile that not even Annabeth could have deduced. She grinned.

"I better go let Mom know before you do. She'll kill me if I don't act like I told her, first."

"Wanna bet?" I stood, and she was laughing before we started running and yelling, "Annabeth!" and "Mom!" I kept waiting for that startle, but apparently the pain had gone away completely. I felt completely normal.

_Weird_, I though as we both came dashing into Annabeth and mine's room.

"Annabeth, Annabeth, Annabeth!"

"Mom, Mom, Mom!"

"Annabeth!"

"Mom!"

"Look at this Annabeth, Chelsea is - !"

"Mom I'm engaged!"

I looked at her. "I call it, I told her."

"No! I did!"

"But I got here first and said her name."

"I said engaged!"

"I said Chelsea is."

"Well…I'm the one getting married! It's mine!"

"Mine."

"Mine."

"_Mine_."

"Pfft, in your dreams, Dad!"

"Guys?"

"Seems like I've got some pretty sweet dreams."

"I got here and told her first!"

"It's a useless fight, Seashell. _I _did."

"No, I did!"

"No, _I _did!"

"I did!"

"I did!"

"GUYS!"

We both silenced and turned our heads to Annabeth, whose cheeks were in a flurry. "Luke is taking a nap," she said slowly. "And I'd prefer him to not be woken up?"

"Sorry," we mumbled. "But just tell me," I continued, smirking. "Which one of us got it?"

She grinned, looked us both up and down.

"I did," she opened her book and went back to reading, leaving us both there in a stump.

"You did?" Chelsea asked. "Mom, you're crazy."

"No, I'm not," she placed her book back down and smiled. "I knew he was going to propose to you three nights ago. I saw the ring yesterday. I win, you two loose, now please go open the door for Jamie before she breaks the doorbell."

Only then did that ringing noise occur to me. I gazed out the window, and I could see Jamie and Audrick arguing about it like they always did. She'd lived her for years, many of them, but she had always used the doorbell.

Sometimes I just didn't get the girl.

Other times, I _really _didn't get her.

I still loved her, though, which I guess is all that counts.

"I got it," I said, walking towards the door. "Oh, and by the way, Chelsea…I still won." I ran back downstairs before she could answer back, thrusting the door wide open.

And, as usual, the first thing I saw on Jamie was her baby bump.

Being a grandfather was still new to me, especially since my first was as old as my youngest. Still, I couldn't wait for that thrill again, to hear the sound of a newborn baby's cry. She was nine months along, only a week or so out from the due date.

She smiled at me. "Mr. Jackson."

"Percy," we had this fight every now and then (and by that I mean on a practical daily bases), and usually she won just by continuing to call me Mr. Jackson no matter how many times I told her not to.

"Mr. Jackson," she nodded again and walked inside, rubbing her stomach and biting her lip. "Where's Mrs. Jackson?"

"Upstairs reading her novel," I said plaintively, soon grinning at my son.

"What's up, Dad?" he asked, pulling me into a man hug. I'll tell you, it never gets old, this Dad-and-son bond we had. The best of bros, the coolest of friends, and yet he still respected me with an air of authority.

"Trying to keep a holt of Luke," I said, pulling back. He'd reached my height now, and his hair was just like mine (except in color).

"How bad is it, honestly?" Audrick was more nervous about his child than I had been, and you can ask anyone, I was super nervous, almost worse than when I couldn't find Annabeth during that winter so many years ago, or when she hurt her arm when we were fighting Kronos.

I smirked softly. "Oh, it's awful," I exaggerated. "He's like a mini-tornado in the middle of a hurricane. Can't let your eyes off of him or let him loose for one second. If you do – "

Audrick placed a tense hand on my shoulder. "Seriously." I could tell by the look in his eye he was really scared of this whole thing. I almost laughed, but decided against it. He would take it to heart faster than Chelsea or Hayley or even Luke would.

I walked him over the couch, catching a glimpse of Jamie as she made her way up the steps like I had earlier. My heart started pounding again just by the thought of it.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. "Honestly? It's exhausting. You come home and all you want to do is lay down and rest, but the baby is screaming and you can't because you just have this feeling in your heart that if you do you'll lose all connection with the baby, not to mention your wife is just so tired from doing it all day long. She won't ask you to help, sometimes even try to stop you from doing anything, but you just have to shove past her and do it. She'll get mad, my fling some comments out there about how you're doing it wrong, yada-yada, but in the end she'll thank you endlessly, thank God for sending you to her. She'll kiss you, and you'll just now that that's where you're meant to be. Then you'll come home the next day and do it all over again. You'll get in a rut. Sometimes you'll feel down and depressed. Lord forbid you have a girl. They wrap you around their finger so tight you just know that you won't be able to get out of anything she asks you for. She'll always be your baby, no matter how old she gets or you get, and if you have a son, man, are those some of the hardest kids to potty train."

He bit back a laugh, while I just laughed out loud.

"You know why you do it, though? Why you go through all the poopy diapers and the up-all-nights and late-to-works?"

He shook his head.

"Because it's the ultimate sacrifice of love. Nothing good can happen unless you have it. _Nothing _can happen, period. You have to have that love. It's the only way to make it through."

I patted him on the back hardily, then stood and stretched, glancing at my watch. "Your sister's going to be here in about fif – " my heart skipped a beat, and I was struck still, like a deer caught in the headlights. "Fifteen minutes," I gulped hard, but I couldn't swallow the ever abounding feeling.

"You okay, Dad?" Audrick was starting to stand up but I waved him down.

"Just thirsty," I explained, not even thinking about how I could have pulled the water to me, but instead having to jerk myself into the kitchen, holding on to the island for dear life. The pain was back, worse than ever, and for a moment I thought about how I might have just found the one thing that hurt more than labor pains.

I sat down at the island and down a few glasses of water. Things were swimming and I was pouring sweat. Audrick had forgotten about me as his wife and Annabeth and Chelsea and Luke all came back downstairs. The doorbell was ringing; had it already been fifteen minutes?

Before I knew it, everyone was gathered around the island, and Hayley looked at me with a large smile. I did one back, though it was in vain.

"Daddy," Hayley smiled and held Carter's hand tight.

Right then, my chest felt tight, too.

"We need to tell you something, Mr. Jackson," Carter continued, his smile matching, if not wider, to Hayley's.

I suddenly couldn't breathe.

"So, guys, we've known this for a couple of months now," I couldn't breathe, "but, I'm three months pregnant."

"Oh, congratulations!" Annabeth smiled and reached across the table, hugging my son-in-law and Hayley. But I still couldn't concentrate, and now sounds and movements were mixing together in a blur. My chest was hurting like crazy.

"We're so happy for you, Hales," Audrick smiled, holding Jamie's hand tenderly. Tommy walked in right then.

"You ready, Chelse?"

"Yeah, just give me a minute." She walked over and kissed the side of my head, though I wouldn't have felt it anyway. Things were vibrating and dancing and doing three sixties like my dyslexia. Everything was pounding like a speaker, every word, every motion.

"And it's twins," Hayley continued.

Right then, I collapsed out of my chair, my chest killing me, feeling like someone was stabbing my heart constantly and a noose was tied around my neck. Black lined the edges of my vision, and I caught some glances and noises, worried faces and a 911 call.

"Percy?" Annabeth was on top of me, staring into my face. I wanted to say something, to tell her I was going to be okay. But I couldn't. "Percy, you're gonna be fine. I promise."

She kissed me softly, and I started rolling, I guess in that time I had been put on a gurney.

Everything dissolved until there was nothing left but me, and darkness.

* * *

><p><em><strong>I've never done a scene like this before (you'll find out what it is next chapter, though it's obvious), but my mom experienced one a couple of years back. I was just guessing at how it would work for guys (since sometimes the symptoms can differentinate between male and females). <strong>_

_**See ya'll next chapter. :)**_

_**REMEMBER - TWO TO THREE MORE PARTS LEFT. Promise. **_

_**Peace, Love, and God bless,**_

_**~Future **_


	37. An Epilouge Part Three

**_WARNING!: A smidge graphic, but nothing too much to handle. (this is where the + in "K" comes in.)_**

**_I switched POV's more than I wanted to this chapter, but it's how I wrote it a little bit back and I didn't want to change it too much. It'll start with Percy, fade into Annabeth, and so on and so forth. :)_**

**_Peace, Love, and God bless!_**

**_(two or three more parts after this)_**

**_~Hannah_**

* * *

><p>A bright light flashed in my eyes, making them sting. Voices and noise and motions still ran together with no look of stopping. "Mr. Jackson? Mr. Jackson, can you hear me? You've had a heart attack, Mr. Jackson?"<p>

A heart attack.

_How…soothing,_ I thought sarcastically. It hurt to breathe, like someone was sitting on top of me. My chest started to ping over and over again, and an erratic beeping sounded next to me.

"He's going into cardiac arrest – start CPR now!"

I closed my eyes and drifted off again to avoid hearing or seeing anything else.

In what felt like my last moments, I said a small prayer. Not to the Olympians. Not to anyone in general. Just a prayer. A prayer for Annabeth, a prayer for Hayley, my future grandkids.

I even said one for Clarisse and Athena, my father.

My mind caught, much like a voice would, at my mother, and at that point I couldn't take it anymore.

I couldn't just lay here and let myself die. I had to fight back. _For Annabeth…for Hayley…for Luke and Audrick and Chelsea…Paul and Poseidon…Chiron…Mom…Annabeth…_

My body went slack and numb. I couldn't think anymore.

I couldn't even muster the strength to fight.

**_Annabeth's POV:_**

You don't think about much when your husband or loved one is dying. You don't consider the fact that you might be putting everyone, including a five year old son, in danger by driving down I-20 faster than a speeding bullet.

"Mom," Hayley mumbled nervously from beside me, "I think you should let me drive…"

"Or me," Tommy offered.

"Me, or Chelsea, or Carter," Audrick continued.

"I volunteer," Jamie said, though we both knew that her expanded stomach wouldn't allow such to happen. One glance in the mirror confirmed that.

Luke smiled wide and clapped his hands. "Lukey drive, Lukey drive!" he chanted, and I wanted to laugh. I wanted to laugh so badly, we all did.

Not a one of us managed it, though.

"Mom…"Chelsea's voice was small. "Is Dad…?"

I didn't answer.

I didn't know.

And if we've learned one thing about me, it's that I can't stand to _not know._

"He'll be fine," I finally muttered, tensely grasping the wheel, my knuckles turning white.

"Mom?" Hayley said, her eyes wide. "Mom. Mama. Mama, look out!" She snatched the wheel to the side, right before we crashed head on with another vehicle.

"I…I didn't even see it," I said, trying to be defensive.

"Pull over," she said, softly at first.

"Hayley Moonlight, I'm fine."

"Pull – over."

"I said I'm fi –"

"Mama, pull – over – NOW." We glared at each other for a moment after that, but I knew I just didn't have the strength or the will to argue. I turned on my blinker and pulled over on the side of the road. Hayley looked particularly satisfied as she took off her seat belt.

"Thank you," she smirked, and I rolled my eyes, switching places with her. Right then I felt like one of Apollo's magical cows: big, red, and stupid.

Hayley drove so slow it was almost mocking, as if she wasn't worried.

I should've known better, though. I could see the creases in her forehead, her eyebrows scrunched together just like Percy's. I believe she was holding the wheel tighter than I was, if that was possible.

"So, Carter," Hayley smiled, trying to spark up conversation. "Why don't you tell Mom about the names we've picked out for the babies?"

Carter smiled back. "Well," he said, "if it's a girl we're definitely going to name her Elizabeth, after Ellie." The whole car got silent for a moment, before he swallowed and continued, "And if we're blessed with a boy or two, we were thinking one named after Percy,"

"Such as Perseus Carter Stoll," Hayley explained, and I nodded stiffly.

"They sound like wonderful names." I tried for a smile, but it just wasn't in me. Not now.

Chelsea sighed wistfully. "I can't wait to have a baby."

Hayley and Jamie laughed. "Yeah, you can," Hayley said.

"Being pregnant is worse than torture in the Fields of Punishment," Jamie exclaimed, a smile on her face.

"Especially during the summer," I commented. "Have you ever tried to get around in above 100 weather with a big weight in your front?"

"Hey, wait a minute. What's today's date?" Jamie asked, a nervous look coming over her.

"August 18th," Hayley answered absently, "why?"

"Because I think my water just broke a week early."

If you've never seen Audrick almost pass out, it's not a pretty sight. Luke sniffed the air and pinched his nose. "Eew!" he squeaked, rolling down the window. "That smells _nassy_!"

"Nasty," I corrected out of habit.

"Mom, how much longer until we get to the hospital?" Audrick was bouncing up and down, couldn't seem to sit still, as Jamie continued to bite her lip and squeeze Audrick's hand. She'd been having contractions for the past week or so, and I could only imagine how intense they must've been right then, in a minivan completely compacted with people.

I calculated it in three seconds. "Ten minutes, if not sooner."

"Crap!" Hayley suddenly shouted, right as we veered off an exit to St. Augustine and came to bumper to bumper traffic. "Pardon my French, Lukey. Make that fifteen, twenty minutes. If we're lucky."

"Audrick?" Jamie whispered, and I just barely heard. "This baby isn't going to wait that long…" Just then she bit her thumb to keep from crying out, and her body lurched forward, her eyes squinted together in pain.

"There's got to be some place closer – Carter!" Audrick turned to his brother-in-law, his face constricted with worry. "Isn't Aunt Kate like a pediatrician or something?"

"Use some sense, ding-a-ling," Hayley shouted to the very back seat. "Pediatricians don't deliver _babies _they _treat _them."

"I _know that_," he snapped back. "But she'd probably know what to do!"

"EV'WE ONE STOP YELLIN!" Luke yelled, covering his ears, his jet black hair falling in his face. "I can't hear me'self think."

"She might, but I think she's…Hayley, quick, take the next right!"

"Why?"

"Because I just saw Mom's car! I think she's stopping at the gas station. Aw, thank God!"

Hayley looked to me. "Is it okay if we…?"

I nodded. I didn't want to miss the birth of Audrick's first child, my second grandchild. It just wasn't going to happen. I'm not sure what had come over me, but suddenly, I just felt like Percy would be okay, and I had different matters to attend to.

Taking the right not moments later, we slid into the gas station just before Katie got back in her car. "Mom!" Carter shouted from the window.

"Aunt Kate!" Audrick called. He'd always done that, even though he wasn't really her nephew in blood or anything.

"Hey, guys," she waved and smiled at us. Hayley stopped the car suddenly, Audrick throwing the door open and hopping out before we even got put in park. He grabbed Katie's hands as Jamie slid out of the car, quivering in pain.

"Can you deliver a baby?"

Katie's eyes narrowed and her brow furrowed, and she examined Jamie up and down. "Um…maybe."

"Go-good," Jamie panted, releasing her death grip on the sliding car door handle. "Maybe is…is all we…we need."

Katie took a deep breath. "Okay, okay, um, Annabeth, is there a pair of scissors in your car?"

"I gots some!" Luke shouted, handing them up to us, and I grinned a little. Leave it to the five year old. "Here ya go, Mommy."

"Thanks, Lukey," I took the scissors and handed them to Katie, who shooed Chelsea inside to go wash them thoroughly. "Get a bowl, or some big container of warm water, too! And a rag!" She added, her face becoming grim.

"Jamie?"

"Ye-yeah?"

"I need to check you first and…" she trailed off, and Jamie just nodded. "Not here. As soon as Chelsea gets back, we need to go over to the side of the road, perhaps hidden in a thick collection of branches or something. Delivering her here would just make a huge scene."

We could only nod as Chelsea came dashing back out, carrying the scissors in a plastic bag, a rag next to it. "I'll have to go back in for the container," she panted, running back into the store, and coming out a moment later.

Without a word, we all took our positions back in the van, Katie following us to the closest thicket of trees.

"You ready?" Katie smiled and grabbed Jamie's hand, giving a comforting squeeze. She nodded.

"Push!"

**_Jamie's POV:_**

"Ahhhhhh!" I screamed, biting my lip so hard I tasted blood. I'd never imagined I'd give birth on the side of the road in a mini-van. But there I was, Katie and Annabeth in front of me, Hayley on the other side dampening my face with a wet rag, and Audrick, who looked more clueless than I'd ever seen anyone look.

"Jamie," Katie looked at me. "She's almost here. I need you to push again."

I kept biting my lip and shook my head fiercely. "No," I mumbled. "I can't."

"Jamie, honey, please," Hayley said, looking into my eyes. "Trust me, it'll be so worth it once she's in your arms."

"Push, please," Annabeth said, her smile fragile but warm and comforting.

"Jamie." All I had to do was meet Audrick's eyes and feel his grip on my hand. "Listen to me. If there was ever any person on this earth that could do this, it's you. No one else is as strong as you are, and I know that this wasn't in your – our – plan, but please. I need you to do this. She, if it's a she, needs you do this. Please, for us all, okay?" He nodded, and I nodded, and I took a deep breath.

Screaming was all I could understand, the only thing that even particularly made sense at that point. "Come on, come on, come on…" Audrick mumbled beside me.

Then there was a cry that wasn't my own, and I felt like I could relax.

Katie wiped the sweat off her brow as she placed a wiggling, warm baby on my chest, and I'll tell you one thing – I had never felt so right than in that moment, right there, a daughter in my arms and my husband by my side. I didn't care that we were in a mini-van or on the side of the road for all passing cars to see us.

"Scissors," Katie turned to Chelsea, who handed her the scissors. She got Audrick's mesmerized attention. "Does the father wish to cut the cord?" she asked, smiling, and Audrick looked between me and his mother as if wanting us to answer for him. I smiled and nodded fast. Which, in turn, made him smile and nod fast. Katie grinned and gave him the scissors, and he cut the only life line that baby had had since conception.

Audrick gave the scissors back to Katie, and became mesmerized once again by our daughter.

**_Audrick's POV:_**

She was so tiny that I was afraid I would break her if I held her. Instead, I just ran on finger from the tip of her head, down to her cheek, touching each finger individually.

"She needs a name," Hayley smiled at us.

Jamie and I looked at each other, glancing back and forth. It then dawned on us that we didn't even discuss names yet, said we wanted to do it just a couple of days before she was born.

And now she was here, and she didn't have a name.

"I think we should name her Kennedy," Jamie said, placing her finger in the, _my, _baby's fist.

"Kennedy Grace Jackson?" I tried, hoping she'd agree. Jamie seemed more content than ever with that answer.

"Kennedy Grace Jackson."

"So…what now?" Chelsea asked, gingerly feeling Kennedy's back. "Do we call an ambulance? It might be the fastest way to get there."

Hayley face-palmed. "Of course! I'm such and idiot. We should have called and said we had a pregnant woman going into stage four labor, and they would've been here instantly! Ugh!"

Carter grasped her shoulders. "Calm down, Hales, it was just a mistake."

"Oh, no, no, no, no. _Mistake _was misspelling my middle name until fourth grade. _Mistake _was believing Alexander Crechchoff actually liked me. _Mistake _was not believing in miracles. A _mistake _is _not _what this is."

Carter shuddered. "I can't wait 'til you get past the hormonal stage you're in."

"I am not – oh. I am…"

"In the meantime, I'm gonna call John. He's out patrolling in one of the sub-divisions so as to be closer for any wrecks. I think this can be an exception for him," Katie said, putting her iPhone to her ear. John was one of her personal buddies, an EMT that was strictly supposed to pick up crash victims.

"Hi, John? Yeah, it's Kathryn. I was just wondering if you were anywhere nearby. No, I've not been in a crash, but my, um, _sister's _daughter-in-law went into labor and I delivered her on the side of the road, and we need to get to St. Augustine _fast._ Mind helping an old friend out? Thanks. See you in a bit." She ended the call and looked to us. "He'll be here in five, maybe two."

All we could do was nod, when Luke jumped up from the back seat, scaring me half to death. I'd forgotten he was there. He reached up and he poked Kennedy, earning a squeak from her.

"Eew, again," he said, scrunching up his nose. "It's so…_squishy._"

I cracked a small smile, and there came the ambulance sirens. I leaned in close to Jamie. "Would it be okay if Mom rode with you? With Dad's heart attack and all, she needs to get there, sooner than we will in the car."

Her face fell a little, but it brightened up not a moment later. "Of course. Just promise you'll get there, eventually."

"As soon as I can," I kissed her forehead as John arrived, pulling out a gurney.

"John," Katie smiled and gave him a side-hug. "Thank you so much."

"It's no problem. Just be glad the head director is one of your fans." Together we helped Jamie on the gurney, Kennedy still in her arms.

"Anyone going with us?" He asked, searching all of our faces. Mom was about to say something, just as I had predicted she would. She retreated, though.

Jamie and I exchanged a small glance. "You go," I smiled tightly at Mom. "I'll ride with Hayley.

"Are you sure? Audrey, I'll be fine…"

"Please, I want you too. I'm shaking too much to ride in the back with her." I held up my shaking hand. "Now, go. Make sure Dad's okay." With that, I kissed Jamie and ran a finger over Kennedy again before I climbed in the passenger seat. She needed to be there with Dad, that's the only reason I'd ever let her go instead of me.

She was going to argue with me, I just knew she was, but Hayley stopped her, shoving her in and winking at me. "Grandma's gonna go with her," I heard her muffled voice from outside the car. The doors closed behind Mom, and my heart was crushed.

She'd been in this world ten minutes, and already I had decided I would give my life for her.

"And the Daddy-Daughter syndrome has begun," Carter laughed, clasping me on the shoulder, and I gave a smirk. "Don't worry, it only gets harder from here. Just wait until she's five and asking for an iPhone."

Five.

Five.

She would turn _five_?

I placed my palm to my forehead, closing my eyes and groaning.

"What's wrong with him?" Hayley asked as she got back in the car.

"Yeah, he looks pretty sick," Chelsea commented. Tommy sat wordlessly beside her.

"It's –" Carter started.

"_Five._" I finished.

I didn't say much more after that.

**_Annabeth's POV:_**

"I hope you don't mind my coming instead of Audrick," I said, still staring at the baby in her arms. Kennedy Jackson. I couldn't seem to stop thinking about her.

"It's not a problem, Mrs. Jackson, honestly," Jamie smiled, and I gave a small one back.

"Why didn't you tell me it felt so…so…"

I knew what she was talking about and it filled me with pride. I brushed her hair back. "It's not something you can describe, honey. It is what it is,"

"And that's all it'll ever be," she smiled softly. "That's what my older sister Harriet used to say. She was like my mother, you know, since Mom was never around and all."

"I get that," I said. "Even my step-mother and I butted heads for several years. She never felt like a mother, sometimes I called her a kindly one and a harpy behind her back. I'm just glad you had Harriet."

Jamie laughed. "It's not as fun or good as you would think. Harriet sounds a lot like your step mother – we would fight and disagree all the time, but whenever I needed someone to latch on to and spill out all of my troubles, she was there. Like when I got cancer…"

She trailed off and tucked the small blanket John had given us up to Kennedy's chin. "She's gorgeous," I reassured her. "And she's fine. She's not going to stop breathing," I smiled as she reluctantly took her palm off of Kennedy's small chest.

"Also," I added with a smile, "the best way to make sure she's still breathing is to hold a single finger under her nose. And never stick the thermometer in their mouth."

"Where would I…oh," her cheeks got a little red.

I almost laughed. "Yeah. Not the prettiest place, but it works the best."

Jamie chewed on her lip, and the silence around us was cumbersome. She looked like she wanted to say something, but I wasn't going to provoke it out of her. If she wanted to tell me something, then she would.

She did not soon after I thought that.

"Annabeth," she said timidly, looking at the ceiling, her daughter, the wall, anything but me.

"Hmm?"

"I just wanted to say that…well, I mean, Harriet was a cool big sister and all and she was a great mother-figure to me and…and…"

I patted her arm, found her hand and gave her a squeeze.

"Thank you. I haven't done that much, but thank you."

"_Haven't done that much?_" she quoted in such a shrill voice I feared she was mad at me. "_Haven't done that much? _Annabeth, when my landlord kicked me out you let me live with you. You gave me a room and food and helped to put me through college. Without you…I just don't know where I'd be. Certainly not here."

"Why do you not think so?"

She sighed. "Because…because I know myself. And myself is a person who would give up my happiness for others. I, basically, would've driven Audrick away if you hadn't of took me in, if I'd been left out in the streets trying to think of a way to finish paying off my medical bills and the apartment and college and all of it. I would have made him leave so he didn't have to suffer with me. How awful, right?" she blew some hair out of her eyes.

"You wouldn't have been able to do that." I said quietly, Kennedy grabbing my finger and refusing to let go.

"Why not?" she seemed a little in shock that she couldn't have done something, and it made me smile.

"Because he's loved you since the day you pecked him on the cheek when you were at camp. Since the fireworks when he realized you were just as beautiful outside as you were in. All of the treatments, the prayers, the asking you to marry him, and even when he got cold feet and chickened out the first time. When you broke up because your dad made you, he was heartbroken. We couldn't get him to eat for weeks, it might have even been a month until we got him to laugh or even barely smile. He would run away to be with you. He would travel the earth to get you to be his. He's cheesy, but that's what makes him Audrick Jackson. He loves you, Jamie, and nothing could come between or break that."

"Like with you and Percy," she smiled.

I shrugged. "I wouldn't say that. With you and him it was instant love. But for Percy and I, well, I think it had to grow. At first we couldn't stand each other. We were like Noah and Allie in _The Notebook._"

She nodded and shook her head at the same time.

"What?" I asked.

"I don't believe that. Sure, you two are a lot like Noah and Allie. But do you honestly think it didn't take time? No, there were times when Audrick and I couldn't stand to be in the same room with each other. We couldn't stand to breathe the same air. We would argue about useless things, of course, like who should pay the bill for dinner or drive the other one home or whether or not he used a toothbrush or cleaned out his car or even the kind of soup we got at the resturaunt! It didn't matter, just that we fought and made up sometime soon, sometime later. I think the fighting fueled us into the passionate, Nicholas Sparks worthy characters that we are now. And I find it funny, sometimes, to think like that."

"Why?" I was genuinely curious. When this girl spoke, her voice was like an angels, one that you just couldn't ignore. I'm not saying that she _was _an angel, but man did she sound like one.

She laughed. "It's just – have you ever read _A Walk to Remember_?"

I shook my head. "No, but I've heard of the movie. Some girl with cancer, a love story, yada-dada-dah…"

She nodded. "The books better, but the movie's all right. Anyway, I just couldn't help but thinking, _Wow. That's so much like me. My name is Jamie, I have a single dad, I don't cut my hair and wear skirts, I believe in something bigger, and I've got cancer. How ironic, I suppose._"

It almost killed me how she was smiling.

"I almost don't get you," I said. She tilted her head to the side. I continued, "I mean, you've got so much to be angry about. Everything that's happened to you…"

I looked into her eyes, and I finally understood it. I could see it.

"Why get angry about something you can't change?" her fragile voice calmly stated.

Before either of us could break the never ending silence that followed, we arrived at the hospital. I glanced at Jamie. "When they open the doors, I'm going with you."

That was unexpected, not only to her, but to me. I was going to say that I was heading after Percy, to check on him. Something stopped me, though.

"O-okay," she stammered, her eyes uncomprehending.

The doors to the ambulance opened, and a fairly dramatic scene took place. Hoards of doctors surrounded her and the baby. I would've been lucky to get within in five feet. They constantly kept pushing me back, even when they started to wheel her away like it was life or death.

It was a scene out of Grey's Anatomy, and that's about the only way to put it.

"Ma'am?" A small, plump woman with auburn hair and a kind face smiled up at me, and I couldn't help but grin back.

"Yes?"

"If you'll come with me. I think someone wants to see you, by the name of Perseus Jackson?"

"That's my husband," I said, a little too quickly. Though I didn't understand how it could be too quick. "Is he okay?" that one I asked a little too slowly.

"He's doing better, but he isn't in great condition. He's been mumbling something about a beautiful blonde and then farm animals attacking him. Some dreamer you've got."

"Thanks," I said absently. He was alive.

He wasn't great, but he's better.

"When can I see him?"

"Now, if you'd like. But soon they're taking him down for some tests, EKG and all that. They might have already put him to sleep." She led me inside and through the waiting room, all the way back to room three zero two. She pushed the door open, just enough to squeeze her head through, and after a few mumbles and shaking of heads, she popped back out. "They're taking him down now. The doctor will be out in a few minutes to discuss everything with you, sign the documents and such. You can wait in the waiting room until then."

"Uh, yes," I wasn't really thinking about what she was saying. "Thank you, ma'am."

"Name's Debby."

"Debby. Thank you."

I walked slowly back through the inter-changing corridors, and was soon ambushed by everyone who had rode in the van, Hayley balancing a sleeping Lukas on her shoulder.

"He fell asleep on the ride over," she said softly, handing him to me, and I took him without hesitation. "How's Dad?" she took a seat next to Carter, and by the way she leaned back you could see how she was three months pregnant, almost looked more if you looked directly at her.

"He's – they're taking him down for testing. He'll be back up soon."

I pressed my lips into Luke's forehead, holding on to him tight. He was the only one who even remotely looked like Percy; even Chelsea had my grey eyes. Luke was a perfect match to him. I couldn't lose him. I just couldn't.

"Everything's going to be okay," she reassured.

I nodded, rocking back and forth in the chair, humming a soft tune for Luke to hear as he sucked on his thumb. "I know," I kissed him again. "I know."


	38. An Epilouge Part Four

_**...Gllllaaaahhhhgggg.**_

_**Okay. Next chapter, it's going to be sort of hard to understand. Well, maybe. It's just, there will be an importance of keeping up with the time changes. I'm going to go ahead and apologize in advance for all of the POV changing I managed to do...AGAIN XP **_

_**Hayway, hope you enjoy guys. I'm such a sap. :)**_

_**Peace Love and God bless!  
>~Future<strong>_

* * *

><p><strong><em>7:30 PM<em>**

**_Same Day_**

**_Carter POV:_**

Hayley yawned beside me, and I kissed the side of her head, rubbing her arms. "Why don't you head on over to Mom's house? Pick up Hallie? Take Lukey home for some good night's sleep?" It was almost ironic, how we had already planned for Hallie to spend the night with Mom and Dad, and had already dropped her off, when this occurred.

Hayley nodded sleepily, and then shook her head when she realized what she was saying. "If I do that, I mean, what if he wakes up and I miss it?"

"Hayley," I grabbed her shoulders and looked her hard in the eyes. "Your dad is going to be _fine._ I'll call you when I hear something, okay? Hallie has school in the morning, and you need rest." I placed my hand on her softly rounded stomach, and she seemed to finally understand. She sighed irritably, glared at me with a playful smile.

"Fine," she said, standing up and stretching. "I'll be back to pick up Luke after Hallie,"

"Get me a coffee?" I asked, smirking.

"Get it yourself," she said, smiling.

How that got started between us, I'd never know. But it was our thing, and we didn't plan to lose it, no matter what happened.

"Love you," I stood and wrapped my arms around her waist, and she threw her arms around her neck, our eyes staring into the others.

"Are you trying to _seduce _me?" she asked.

"Maybe," I said, pulling her into a deep kiss.

"Alright, alright, break it up lovebirds," Tommy said, stepping between us.

Hayley rolled her eyes and playfully pushed him away. "You worry about face-sucking my little sister, would ya?"

"Hayley, please," Audrick said, still sitting uneasily in his chair. He had always been overly protective of Chelsea since that day she was in the car wreck with Annabeth. He couldn't imagine, and didn't want to think about the fact that she was getting married in a couple of months.

Hayley, though, had always had fun teasing the young lovers, and I didn't blame her. It was pretty hilarious, especially when Tommy's cheeks, or Chelsea's, or both of their cheeks flared up a bright red.

Hayley stuck her tongue out, gave me one more kiss before pulling on her coat, and headed outside, placing her phone to her ear, calling for a taxicab.

Once she was gone, Audrick stood and took the place beside me.

"Here it comes," I said sarcastically, and he glared. "Oh, just spit it out."

"How have you handled it? In the past? Now?"

_It_. His daughter. His wife.

"I dunno," I stretched out and yawned, rolled my shoulder blades. "It just sort of came naturally. Kids have always been on the agenda, and when you have one mom who works in the medical business treating them and a dad working as a family engineer, you learn a lot and just get used to it."

I glanced around at all of us. Annabeth was dozing in her chair, and Chelsea had taken Luke from her some time ago. Now he sat up playing with some toy cars the hospital had set out.

"That's helpful, thanks," he sneered.

"Dude, it'll come to you, I promise."

"Then why am I still so nervous?" He was practically bouncing in his chair, and when he raised his hand, it was trembling worse than the earthquake in Haiti.

"First time jitters," I suddenly recalled mine and Hayley's first time here. It made me chuckle as I thought back to it.

_"She's the only nearly ten pound baby we've ever had in this NICU," the nurse told me kindly. I nodded, not really listening to her. My face was pressed up against the glass. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. _

_I was worried. Sure, they said she'd be fine within the next day or two, but it still scared me. What if she had some kind of defect from this? What if she couldn't walk, talk, see or hear? What if…?_

_"Excuse me, sir," another nurse said softly to me, grasping my arm gently. _

_"Uh-huh?" I mumbled. _

_"The NICU is closing. You'll have to leave."_

_"Uh-huh…wait, what?" I jerked my head from the glass and looked at her. _

_"You'll have to leave," she repeated simply, shooing me off. I muttered about how she could have been nicer or at least let me say goodbye. _

_"It's not like she's going anywhere," Hayley said sleepily, her eyes still tightly closed. She'd been sleeping for the past eight hours, and she was still exhausted. I didn't blame her. I **hadn't **gone through the birthing process, and I was beat. _

_"But, just imagine Hayley!" I was jumpy and skittering about. "They could take her, swap her, Hera could come and abduct her – aliens! Aliens I say!"_

_She laughed, snuggling into the pillows. _

_"You're worrying too much, as always," she sighed, clasping her hands as if in prayer and folding them beneath her head. "Get some sleep, okay?"_

_"Yeah, yeah," I threw myself into the chair next to her, and watched as she drifted off into a slumber that would never come for me. _

"Your wife will be fine," I ended, not even realizing that I'd said it all out loud.

Tommy gulped on the opposite side of me, staring at Chelsea. "New rule – we're not having kids."

Chelsea shrugged, squeezing Luke in a hug. "We'll see on our wedding night."

"Yeah, you know, when you're both sitting up at least three feet away from each other watching Pixar movies, right?" Audrick snapped suddenly.

"Sure, Audrey. Sure."

"Mrs. Jackson?" several of us jerked our heads towards the nurse, including the now aroused Annabeth.

"Yes?" she yawned and stretched, placing her feet back on the ground from the tucked in position in which they'd been.

"This is highly unorthodox, but your husband is demanding to see you, what a delirus state he's in."

"How so?"

"Well, we've had him drugged for hours, Mrs. Jackson. He should be asleep by now, but refuses unless he knows you're going to be there. I've never seen anyone with such motivation, Mrs. Jackson."

"He _is _fairly stubborn," Annabeth laughed and followed behind the nurse, waving shortly to us. We waved back, safely assuming that we wouldn't be allowed back there for some time.

"I think I'll get some shut eye," I said softly, already curling up in the uncomfortable chair. "Wake me if you hear something."

I closed my eyes, and for a few minutes there was complete silence, until a small sound came from Luke's direction.

Chelsea laughed. "I think I heard something."

"It wasn't me!" Luke cried, though we could all smell it and were laughing.

"I hope Hayley's here to get you soon, kiddo," Tommy said, ruffling his hair.

Even with my eyes closed I could see the broad smile etched on his face.

* * *

><p><p>

**_Hayley's POV:_**

After having the cabbie drop me off at Mom and Dad's house to get my own Honda, I poked the door bell, listening as it rang out in Katie's house. She was still at the hospital with Mom, but Travis would be here.

Connor Jr. opened the door, grinning crazily at me. "Dad! Hayley's here for Hallie!" He continued to smile suspiciously. "Please, come in."

I walked in slowly, my chin dropping to the floor.

"Travis…" I started slowly, looking at him as he made the "I didn't mean to knock the vase over" face, and shrugging. "What have you done?"

Hallie was asleep on the coffee table in the living room, a small rug thrown over her. Crayon and paint and flour decorated the floor and the ceiling. Jam was rubbed all over Max's face.

"She wanted to play…and then there was the pie and…" Travis trailed off, scratching the back of his head, just as a piece squished chocolate flew down from the ceiling. I glared at him, but could only smile at how boy like this nearly fifty year old was.

"Thank you, Travis," I smiled and gathered Hallie in my arms, kissing her forehead roughly. "Here," I smiled and dropped a fifty dollar bill on the table.

"Oh, Hayley, I can't take this," he grinned, just as CJ jumped in between us and grabbed the money.

"I can!"

"Connor!" Travis yelled as his son took off, and he rubbed his temples.

"Sorry about that," he apologized, then laughed. "Boys will be boys, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I dropped another twenty on the table. "Extra for you."

Then I turned and walked out the door, closing it so he couldn't.

Hallie yawned and sat up in my arms, rubbing her tired eyes. "Mommy?"

"Hey, sweetie," I grinned and pushed another kiss unto her cheek. I couldn't kiss her enough it seemed, even in five years.

"Is Grandpa gonna be okay?" She asked between exhausted yawns.

"Yeah, baby," I sighed. "Grandpa's gonna be just fine. How about tomorrow we'll say you caught a cold in your heart and go see him instead of going to school?"

She nodded, but she was still practically asleep. As I strapped her in, she stuck her thumb back in her mouth.

"I want a bite," I said, tickling her. "Can I have a bite?"

"No, Mommy, no!" she giggled, and in the next moment her head slumped over, and I couldn't help but smile.

I ran a hand through my hair and looked up to the stars.

Sometimes I didn't understand why things happened like they did. I'm not sure I wanted to understand.

Right then, though, comfort surrounded me. I just knew that everything happened for a reason, whether I understood that reason or not.

That everything was going to okay.

I sat back down in the Honda, cranked it, and headed to go get Luke.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Annabeth's POV:<em>**

"Jamie's baby was born today," I said. I don't know why I expected him to answer. I knew he wouldn't, not in this temporary-coma they had him in.

"She's gorgeous, I mean, she really is, Perce. They named her Kennedy Grace and…she has your hair and Jamie's bright eyes…" I gulped. "I mean, I can't wait until you're able to see her, hold her, Percy. You're going to cry, I just know it. She was, um, born in the van and…"

I sighed, feeling hopeless.

"Please be okay. Please."

I was almost asleep when his hand shifted undermine. "Some birthday, huh?" He smiled and flexed his hand, as if trying it out for the first time.

"Percy," relief flooded through me, and I threw my arms around his neck, kissing him hard. When I pulled back, I hovered over him, smiling. "Don't you _ever _do that to me again."

His skin was pale, a little green on his cheeks and his eyes were sunken in, but still he smiled and wrapped a weak arm around my waist.

"Hard to believe you're turning fifty in a few months…"

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up," I rested my head on his chest. He caressed my hair, and before I could even blink, I was asleep.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Two Hours Later – Carter POV<em>**

"You can see him now," the nurse's voice jerked me from my sleep, and I eyed her warily. I was the only one who had responded. Chelsea's cheek was pressed into the head of her chair, and Tommy's head lay in her lap. I had to remind myself that I had sent Hayley home for the night. Audrick had disappeared some time ago to be with Jamie once they had cleared everything and had deemed them both – her and the baby – safe.

"Who?" I asked groggily, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

"Mr. Jackson," she added with a playful smile. "I'll go and alert the other Mr. and Mrs. Jackson down the hall. He's doing much better."

She left, but at that point I didn't care.

When my dad had almost died, I thought I'd lost all hope of living without fear again. During his time in the hospital, Percy had taken me in, treated me like a son, like one of his own. When we thought he was dying…I'd lost it. I couldn't stand to nearly lose another one, not like this, in the same exact way. I just couldn't. Hearing that he was better sent a jolt through my spine, and I stood up and started dancing.

"Wake up!" I shouted merrily, shaking them all. "Wake up, wake up, wake up and come on!"

Maybe it was wrong to be so excited, but I didn't care.

"What's your…problem?" Chelsea yawned, stretching in her seat and ruffling Tommy's hair so he'd stop snoring.

"He's better," I smiled wide, whipped out my cell phone. "I've gotta call Hayley. Get everyone else going! Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

The sign clearly said, "No phone calls within the building". I pretended like I didn't see it, though, and called Hayley. She picked up immediately.

"Is he - ?"

"Better," I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, laughed. "He's better. When can you get here?"

I could see her grin. "Ten minutes. Four if traffic is lite."

"Not too fast, okay? We want Hallie to see her fifth birthday, and the twins to see their first."

"Oh, ha-ha. See you soon. Love you."

"Love you," I hung up and pretty much dashed outside to wait for her. After thirty seconds of trying that, I ran back inside and down the hall, passing by Audrick, Jamie, Tommy, and Chelsea.

Alive and okay. He was alive and okay.

I burst through the door, and had to keep myself from crying in relief.


	39. An Epilouge Part Five

**_PRAISE THE LORD I MANAGED TO DO IT!_**

**_Well, He did it, but at least it got done! :D (By this, I mean there's only one POV throughout the whole chapter. :) ) _**

**_So, as usual (and I'm sure every one of you knew this) forget what I said last chapter. Time is a smidge important, but not as much as I had expected it to be. _**

**_Hayway, hope you enjoy! One more after this, a short, final farewell. _**

**_PEACE LOVE AND GOD BLESS HUNNIE BUNNIES3_**

**_~;D Future_**

* * *

><p><strong><em>8: 30 PM<em>**

**_Same Day_**

**_Hayley's POV:_**

The kids had slept all of five minutes before they were up partying again. Hallie was in amazement that I wasn't sending her off to bed, and she kept looking at me sideways every time she turned around, as if expecting me to do it.

I just laughed as they twirled and spun and acted goofy, while I tried to get some reading done. Reading had never really been something I enjoyed, that is, until I read _Pride and Prejudice _one fall at the university. I was now in journalism, a dying art it seems, with a minor in psychology. I was working right then on my degree in the cinematic arts.

Mom always said that with knowledge, one can accomplish anything they set their minds to.

I believed her.

"Hey'ah, Mommy," Hallie said, coming to stand in front of me.

"Hey'ah Hayley," Luke wasn't far behind her.

I could see them trying to hide their little smirks, so I stuck my nose up over my novel and looked at them. "What is it, you two Billy goats?"

Hallie laughed. "Mommy we ain't no Billy goats!"

"We _aren't_." Dear Lord I was turning into my mother.

"We _ain't no_,"

"Bite that tongue," I warned, "or I'll send you _both _to school tomorrow and we can forget about visiting Pops."

That was the only thing any of us could think to call Dad when Hallie and Luke were in the same room. Pops. _Pops_.

We could've been more creative, but now it was just habit.

"You mean Daddy," Luke said, right as Hallie said, "You mean Grandpa."

"Na-uh. _Daddy_," Luke said, glaring and putting his hands on his hips like he always saw Mom do. I bit back a laugh.

"No, _Grandpa._"

"Daddy,"

"Grandpa,"

"_Daddy._"

"_Grandpa_."

"Dah-dee."

"Gran-paw."

"Pops!" I threw in there just to throw them off.

Luke tsked. "No, Hayley, it's not _pops_. It's Daddy, and his real name is Seaweed Brain."

At that, I couldn't help but laugh so hard that I snorted.

"Wha-what?" Luke giggled.

"Nothing, nothing," I fanned him off and reopened my book.

A few minutes later they came back, crawling up next to me on the couch and breathing over my shoulder.

"Yes?" I finally asked, setting it back down in my lap.

"Hayley," Luke started.

"We was thinkin', Mommy…"

"Ooh, how scary!" I smiled and kissed her, pulling her into my lap.

"And we're hungry," Luke continued.

"So will ya make us some pancakes?"

I sighed playfully and rolled my eyes. "What is it with you kids and pancakes?"

"It's the only thing our Mommy can cook," Luke said expertly. "Duh."

I laughed again, this time planting a kiss on the side of Luke's head. "Fine, fine. At this rate, I'm going to have to go buy some more Bisquik."

"I want the real stuff, Mommy," Hallie said, pulling herself into a chair. Luke climbed up beside her. "Not that biscuit."

"_Bisquik_,"

She gave me a dumbfound stare. "That's what I saids, Mommy. _Biscuit_." She only messed up said because I'd corrected her on it so many times. She was me made over.

To be honest? That scared me. I grew hateful and cold in my older years, which is how Eris took me over, and we still weren't sure, even after so many years, if she was gone completely. She could still attack any of us, and the last person I'd wish that upon was my own daughter. I could still remember the chill that was sent down my spine, the grogginess, every single movement that I couldn't control. It was frightening. The only thing I'd wanted to do was snuggle up with a blanket and a stuffed animal and sleep it all away. Sadly, her spell wasn't that strong, and I was awake for most of it. In some ways I was glad that I had, but in others…

I stirred the ingredients, trying hard not to recall those times, when she did things that just made me want to curl my fists. Like the fight with Ellie, or before then, when she was with my brother. When she was with Carter…

"Mommy you're burning the pancakes!" Hallie screeched at me, and I quickly flipped it to the other side.

"You okay, Hayley?" Luke was looking at me worriedly, and I nodded absently.

I didn't know why I hadn't snapped like I did when she'd gone after Ellie. Maybe it was because I didn't have feelings for Carter at that moment. Maybe it was because I wasn't thinking straight with her spell. Maybe…

I had no justifications for it. How could I?

The way she had treated him made me want to spit in her eyes. It took me months, years to open up about it. I think it was the evening he proposed, and I slightly mentioned the affair (and by this, I mean I asked him outright) over dinner. He had gulped hard and told me it was nothing, that he knew it hadn't meant anything, that it was just a shadow that'd overcome me.

Still, I couldn't shake it. I still haven't.

"MOMMY!" Hallie said loudly, steering my attention away from my thoughts and to her.

"Wh – yes, sweetheart?" I almost snapped at her. I saw the fear glowing in her eyes as she gulped down a drink of milk from her cup (Sippy, Dora the Explorer).

"Can I have the seer-up, please?"

I didn't bother to correct her that time, handing her the bottle of syrup and once again becoming mesmerized in my own thoughts.

_"Hey, Hayley!" _

_Eris shot my body in the voice's direction, and when I could see through the fogginess, I realized who it was. Carter. _

_"Ahh," she cooed. "Carter Sunny Stoll."_

_He skittered to a stop in front of me, his cheeks growing hot. Even under his expert tan, you could see the red that outlined his eyes. _

_"I just wanted to see if you – "_

_"Why would I?" she snapped, sending chills down my spine. My voice, it sounded so hateful. So ungrateful. _

_He tilted his head to the side and held up a flyer, "Well, it's just, Uncle Carter and CJ, Ellie, and I have been planning this special prank on the entire camp and since Ellie couldn't find you she sent me out to scout. Something about her, having a previous affair to get to? Would you like to – "_

_"No!" she growled. "I wouldn't ever even **dream **of it, boy. I have far better important things to do than hang around the likes of you, especially if you have a crush on me. That's just stupid, much like you are." She shoved him in the chest. My own chest clenched in fear and anger. He fell to the ground, his face awestruck. _

_"Hayley, I…"_

_"Get lost!"_

_"But Hayley – "_

_"I said beat it, twerp!" She kicked some dust in his face. _

_Carter had always been a bit of a softy, not that it was a bad thing. He was still extremely strong and could control his emotions well. Right then, though, tears brimmed in his eyes. He quickly swiped them away and stood, staring at my back as Eris sauntered us away, almost mockingly. _

"Tee-hanks for the food, Mommy!" Hallie smiled and scampered off from her chair, already drifting back into her world of creations on the art table.

"You know he was hurt, right, Hayley?" Luke said.

As I had gotten older, I'd lost my ability to read minds. I was probably about thirteen when it stopped, and only when he said that did I realize he must be able to do it, too. I had never thought of the possibility that another one of us could have it, too. Chelsea and Audrick might have had it, but I hadn't even noticed.

In addition, Luke was a smart kid. Often times at night he would sneak by Mom and Dad's door, lean against the wall and listen as they discussed what was going on in the outside world. There was talk about grades plummeting, cuts being made, architecture firms that were going obsolete, rises to the top and how much coffee they'd managed to ensue upon in one days' time. Dad won most of the time, except on those weekend occasions when Mom had to go to the office or check up on something or do computer work.

"I would have been too…" I trailed off. _Alright, booger. Are you reading minds? _

"Depends. What's a mind?"

"Your brain," I answered. "Other people's thoughts besides your own?"

"Oh, yes," he nodded eagerly. "The answer is yes then."

"It's not the kind of hurt you're thinkin', though," he continued on, trailing off. It was more than hurt in the heart or in the head, it was a different kind of hurt. A sick hurt."

Now that intrigued me. "What kind of hurt, Lukey?"

"The kind that has something called a tree split."

"A tree split? Oh, a transplant!"

"That's what I said, tree split."

"What was tree split, oh wise Lukas Jackson?"

"It was ah sidney."

"A kidney?" I scrunched my eyebrows together.

"Yeah," he nodded, cutting off another sliver of pancake and sticking it into his mouth. "It was Aunt Ellie's sidney. She was an organ owner."

"_Donor_, and I knew that. I just didn't think…when did this happen?"

"About a month later, maybe a little less. Uncle Carter was taken to the hos-sickle, aunt Ellie went with him, and they did a tree split and he was all better." He gulped his milk, then stood from the chair and ran to the table with Hallie, helping her with a drawing she was working on.

I gulped hard and shakily sat down.

She'd hurt him more than I thought.

About an hour later, we were all sitting on the couch, _Finding Nemo_, my personal favorite, playing on the flatscreen, when my phone vibrated. Luke was asleep on my lap, and Hallie was leaning back on me, sitting on my opposite thigh.

"Hello?" I asked quietly, ruffling Luke's hair.

"Hayley," Carter breathed, relieved.

"What's up?"

"He's – "

"Better?" I asked with a twinge of guilt and fear.

"Better," he confirmed. "When can you be down here?"

"Ten minutes, four if traffic is lite."

"Not too fast, okay? We want Hallie to see her sixth birthday and the twins to see their first."

"Yeah, yeah."

"See you soon."

"I love you," I told him, so desperately trying to proclaim my regret and keep it secret at the same time.

"I love you, too."

I hung up the phone, and told Hallie to grab her shoes.

"Where're we goin', Mommy?" Hallie asked as I carried Luke on my hip with one arm and held her hand with the other.

"We're gonna go visit Grandpa at the hospital," I told her calmly.

"He's better?" She was smiling wide and bouncing; I guess she'd heard Travis and Katie talking about it over the phone.

"He's doing great, sweetie. Hop up in your car seat and strap in, okay?" She nodded and did as I told her, while I took Luke around to the other side and strapped him in his.

I got in the car and drove silently to the hospital, though Hallie did hum along with my old Johnny Cash CD in the back seat.

Oh, you thought I'd gotten rid of it?

Fat chance.

We walked through the hospital doors, now doing the opposite of what we were doing at the house. Hallie was in my arms and I was holding a tight grip on Luke's hand. I was nervous.

I was scared.

"Perseus Jackson, please," I told the receptionist, and she took a few solitary moments to type so slowly on the keyboard that I was close to just finding my own way back there.

"Room three seventy two," she said quietly, and I nodded my thanks, dashing back there, even as she called "Miss!" constantly behind me, trying to get me to stop. I wasn't listening.

I opened the door, laughing and shaking and smiling and crying all at the same time. All of the emotions I'd been keeping in just suddenly evaporated into thin air and it wouldn't stop. One glance and I knew everyone else was feeling the same way.

Dad smiled. "Maybe I should have a heart attack more often. All of this attention is great."

I laughed that nervous laugh that people did when they were relieved. "Don't you dare," I warned. "I can't help but feel like this is my fault," I told them honestly.

He frowned. "Ah, come on, Starfish. It wasn't your fault. Things happen. It was just in the Great Plan that Jamie's always talking about."

All of us gasped at this, face palming mentally.

"The baby!" we said in unison.

Awkward silence soon came upon as everyone, even Dad, leaned towards the doorway. A few seconds later, he smirked, "Well, since I can't go see my new granddaughter, perhaps you'd all like to go for me…?"

"You sure?" Mom said. "We won't mind staying…"

He shrugged. "Go on. Give them both a kiss for me. You can send Audrick in to keep me company." He smiled wholeheartedly. "Go on, now."

Dad waved us all off, and we rolled our eyes at him.

As everyone filed out, I grabbed Carter by the arm at the doorway.

"Can we talk for a second?"

He scrunched his eyebrows as Dad and I do when we're worried or confused. "Yeah?"

I glanced back and forth, suddenly feeling like everyone was staring at us. "Let's go someplace private. I'm thinking supply closet."

"It's high school all over again," he laughed, and I punched his arm. So, yeah, he was two years younger, and during lunch we would meet in the supply closet and eat lunch and just hang out, maybe kiss a little. All of you are so dirty minded.

"Dad can hear you," I hissed playfully, pulling him into the nearest supply closet, where we found a neat collection of toilet paper and medications.

"Well, if you end up getting sick in here, we have a plentiful supply of bedpans," he observed.

"Transplant," I said the word simply, nonchalantly, hoping he wouldn't catch it.

I should've known better. "What transplant? Are you okay? Hallie? The babies? Who needs a transplant?"

"According to my little brother – _the smallest one_ – you did."

"My liver's fine now, Hayley. It was just a small puncture wound. Everything's better now."

My mind was swimming. "Liver?" I eyed him carefully. "I thought it was a kidney…"

"Oh, that one, too. Eris did more damage than we realized. My liver didn't start acting up until a couple of months after Ellie died. That was almost two years later."

"And you didn't tell me?" No, I didn't say it like some dramatic _General Hospital _scene. It was just a general question.

"Well, you would've worried, like you're doing now," he paused to smirk at me. "And you would've been – God I hate to say this – a little overbearing. It would've been sweet and I would've loved the attention, especially from someone as gorgeous as you are, but it would've been too much. Everything's fine now. Everything's fine."

"I don't like how you keep repeating that. Carter, there was more to that email, wasn't there?"

He shrugged. "Agh. Um, I don't know, Hales. They think – note the word _think – _that maybe, just maybe, my body is rejecting the liver."

I closed my eyes. "It's been years – "

"It could still reject it, whether a day from the operation to twenty years later." He interjected, cutting me off.

"But, but…"

"Look, everything's fine. Fine. I'm not going to die. You know I'm too hard headed to let myself." He grinned at me, that sneaky, I'm going to steal your wallet grin that he'd inherited from his father.

"What about medicine? Isn't there some kind of medicine that helps the body to not reject it or something?"

I wasn't a medical whiz, okay? I was smart, but not _that _smart.

"There is. But like the idiot I am, I decided I didn't need it anymore. I haven't been on it for the past two years."

"So that explains those pill bottles in the bathroom. And here I thought you were taking steroids. Why did you stop?"

"It wasn't in the budget at the time, with you still in school, our small salaries, the mortgage, Hallie. It just wasn't, and it _isn't_, a priorty, especially now with the twins." Carter cupped a protective hand on my stomach. I shook my head.

"Carter Sunny Stoll, you need that medicine!"

"No, I don't. It's not a priorty, didn't you hear me?"

"Yes, I heard you! But it is! We won't be able to survive if you die. I mean, if you thought Hallie was expensive, just imagine how much Pip and Pop are going to be." I sighed. "Please. For me? Come on, if it was something that I needed you would force me to get it."

He growled inwardly, groaning outwardly. "Fine. Maybe. I don't know. If I get the promotion at work, then I'll continue to take the medicine. If I don't, we're going to huff it, okay? We can do this."

"Everything's fine, right?"

"Everything's fine. Everything's fine."

"You know, with all of your body parts acting up, Hallie might actually have a firm way into college," I joked, elbowing him as we walked out of the supply closet, earning a few stares from the doctors and nurses. I made a crazy face them, and a few whispered among their selves about how I needed to be in the psych ward.

"No I don't, I'm completely healthy! I got out of the asylum almost a month ago!" I laughed as they all scampered away.

Carter chortled. "Calm yourself, Moonlight."

"Moonlight. Percival. Athene. Poseidon. Sunny. Erin. Callie. Artemis. No, our middle names aren't strange at all." I smiled.

"The only one that's normal is Grace," he shrugged and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "I like it that way."

"Makes us unique. We _are _that."

We walked into Jamie's room, stopping abruptly once we were through the door.

"What happened?"

Jamie smiled wholeheartedly, though once could tell just how bone tired she was. I knew how she felt. Childbirth wasn't a game, that's for sure.

"They took Kennedy to say hi to Mr. Jackson."

I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Honey, you married his son and carried his grandchild. I think you can call him Percy now. He'd probably even accept Seaweed Brain from you."

She shrugged. "I just don't know. It's not how I am." She stretched and yawned, running a hand through her now shoulder length hair. She often complained about how she wished it were longer, but she still kept a smile on her face and thanked God for the hair she did have, that she was alive.

"Tell my husband to come back when you get to the room, will you?" she asked quietly. I nodded and, like any other previously suffering parent, I kissed her on the forehead.

"Of course, sweetie."

Maybe I'd grown soft too.

Carter nodded his goodbye, both of us now making the small trek back to Dad's room. When we got inside, I didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

This was us.

My entire family, all together in one room, all smiling and cheerful even on the bleakest of days. It was picture perfect.

Dad cradled Kennedy in his arms, and he bit his lip to keep from crying. Kennedy was beautiful, as gorgeous as her mother. Mom sat next to him, her legs crossed, her head on his shoulder. They were perfect together. Audrick had left, and came back not a moment later with Jamie, now seated in a wheelchair, insisting that she could walk but Audrick not having any part of it. I knew they would argue about that later. Tommy and Chelsea, my, what a couple they were. From what I understood, (Aphrodite and I had chats from time to time) they were in for it worse than my parents were. They still had some battles to get through, but I knew they'd be able to handle it. They were tough. Luke sat on Mom's lap, staring at Kennedy, and Hallie got the special place next to Dad where Carter stood, gesturing me over.

Slowly, I walked and stood next to them, taking Hallie from Carter, Carter wrapping a protective arm around me.

I've always said how we would never be perfect.

I was right.

I always knew we'd be unsure of things to come.

I was sort of right. I was sure of one.

Life as their kids wasn't an easy task, not by any means. It came with risks of danger, risks of love, and risks of all heck breaking loose.

As a nurse came in to check Dad's vitals, I tossed a camera into her hands. Debbie, that's what Mom had said her name was, seemed to understand, and she took the camera, lined it up the way it was supposed to be, and said, "Smile."

The camera clicked, and sure, I'm sure Hallie had blinked or Luke was moving. Maybe Carter had sneezed and my hair hadn't been brushed. Maybe Chelsea was exhausted, and Jamie's eyes were red. I didn't care.

We were a family. We were perfect, in our own, special way.


	40. Finis

**_I don't know why Hayley seems to be my main focus-on-even-in-third-person character, but, eh. Oh well. :) Praise God anyway!_**

**_I present to you, "Finis", followed by a short and brief thanks/honors. :)_**

**_PEACE LOVE AND GOD BLESS HUNNIE BUNNIES3_**

**_Hope you enjoy. _**

**_~Your Pal Future_**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Five Years Later<em>**

**_Christmas Dinner _**

**_3rd Person POV:_**

"Mom," Hayley shoved herself into her mother's arms, burrowing her face in her shoulder. They'd been in Memphis on vacation when it had happened.

"How…?"

Annabeth smiled. "He's fine. They both are. Just a little scuffed up."

Then, Percy, hobbling on crutches with an embarrassed smile on his face, and his youngest son with the same expression, came through the door. "You're both idiots," Hayley said. Then she smiled. "That's why I love you, isn't it?"

"Aw, c'mon, Hales. It was just a ski trip accident. You would've done the exact same thing!" Percy argued.

"Yes, of course I would've gone _down the trail _that specifically said_ "NO SKIERS"._"

Luke grinned. "It could've been worse. Imagine if your poor little brother had gotten hurt worse than he has, hmm?"

Hayley rolled her eyes, and she would have shoved him playfully had he not been on crutches just like his dad.

"Lukas Jackson!" Hallie screamed, tsking as she stomped over towards them. She slapped him upside the head. "You _are _an idiot. You had me worried sick."

Luke smirked and brushed his hair back cooly. "You know it's just because you love me," he tried Percy's "smolder" look, and got nothing in return except a soft smile and a nudge of the elbow. As the only two same aged children – except for Maxine whom they rarely saw – in the family, Hallie and Luke had bonded as a brother and sister might.

"Mommy!" Kennedy yelled. "JoJo's gettin' in the mash potatoes!"

"Josephine!" Audrick laughed and picked up his youngest daughter, lifting Kennedy up as well. Audrick, Hayley only now realized, was even taller than their dad was. His blonde hair stood in little unintentional spikes on his head, and they almost touched the ceiling wherever he walked.

"Guess I can't call you short fry anymore, huh?" she asked, standing beside him. She had to look up to meet his eyes. He was a foot taller (Hayley had stopped growing at 5'5 when she thought she was 6'2) than she was. A laistrygonian giant they now called him.

"You _can _but that would be called _irony _my dear sister, and in all logical terms it wouldn't – " Audrick joked with a smirk.

"Oh, shut up," she tried to bite back her giggle, though she was forced to release it when a certain son of Travis Stoll ran a hand up her spine. "Car-Car-Carter!" she laughed, shoving him away. He smiled at her. The promotion had brought more to their family than just money. She had her old Carter back. She now saw that on those years in which he didn't have his medicine, he'd become run down and tired, almost never wanted to do anything that was even remotely close to "fun".

She was glad that was over.

"Ow! Oh, dear Lord…" Tommy hurriedly ran to his wife's aid and helped her up. At first, they thought Chelsea couldn't have children. They had in vitro fertilization done, at the same time that Chelsea found out that her period was about a week over due. They didn't know which one had produced "Monster" (the baby's nickname in which Kennedy had bestowed), but they didn't really care. They were having a baby, that's all that mattered.

"Ooh, careful," Tommy smiled. When she nodded her thanks and bent back down to pick everything up, he stopped her. "I've got this. Just go rest, okay?"

Chelsea, who was never one to obey anyone's orders, continued to pick things up, and Thomas, knowing he couldn't do anything about it, helped her with the box of items.

Jamie was happier than anyone it seemed. She'd gotten her wish for longer hair; it was now to her knee caps, even in only a few short years. She'd had two children, both beautiful girls, and now she was expecting a boy. Andrew Ronald Jackson, that's what his name was going to be.

Hayley smiled at all of them, remembering the good old times, looking at the last real family portrait they'd taken together. It was the one at the hospital. My, what good times laid back there. She missed that day, though she was thankful for the ones she now possessed.

Something struck her right then. "Carter, where are Percy and Annabeth?"

"We're here!" Percy shouted, running down the staircase. His full name was Perseus Carter Stoll, and his twin sister was Annabeth Elizabeth Stoll.

Annabeth came laughing behind him, though she decided to slide down the railing and jump into her father's arms.

"Um, right here," Carter said with a sheepish smile.

Many people called them A and P, as not to get confused with the other Percy and Annabeth. Some even called them by their middle names. Hayley liked their real names, though, and intended to call them as such.

"Alright everyone!" Annabeth Jackson made her voice known as the last of the plates were being set out on the table. "Come take your seats," she continued once she had everyone's attention. "It's almost time for dinner."

Everyone stopped what they were doing and made their way over at the thought of food. They placed Josephine in the only highchair, everyone else taking a seat in a normal chair (except for Kennedy, who gladly sat in a booster seat). Percy sat at the head, Annabeth to his right side and Luke to his left. Hayley was at the opposite head, Daddy and daughter together again, attached at a distance but closer than ever before.

They all joined hands, grace was spoken, and plates were passed around. Once every plate covered with annual Christmas delicacies, all glasses were to the brim with either apple juice, or, just for a laugh, sparkling grape juice that resembled wine, Hayley stood, raising her yellowish green glass.

"I'd like to make a toast," she said with a smile.

Everyone likewise lifted their glasses high, including little Josephine, with her bottle (she was about a year old) jutting up into the air.

"I can honestly say that our lives have thrown us a bit of surprises," she grinned, nodding towards her parents, her daughter, her twins, her siblings, her husband. "Whether it was an unexpected child or an incurable disease; heart attacks and car wrecks. We've suffered death, pain, joy and weddings. These things are all important. Without them, we would not be the people we are, here, today. Jamie, you might be dead had we not gone to that church that morning. Carter, if you hadn't have had that promotion, we might have ended up living with my parents." She gulped down her guilt of not telling about his transplants. He'd asked her not to, so what was her place in it? She'd keep it a secret until she couldn't any longer.

"Dad, if you can my incompetent brother" – even in her old age, now thirty one, she still managed to crack on her little brother – "hadn't gone on that ski trip, well, maybe we would've been able to afford a _non-hunted _turkey this Christmas."

There were a few chuckles, and she herself laughed. As all died down, though, she got to the true meaning of this increasingly long speech.

"My point is…I think it's all shaped us. I think in some ways fate brought us here. In other ways, though? I think we formed it ourselves. So, I propose a toast. To family." She smiled wide.

"To family," they all replied in unison.

"Gah-gee-gah!" Josephine exploded, which cause a merry train of laughter.

An hour or two later, everyone began tearing at the presents under their grandparents' and parents' tree.

_We've survived life as **their **kids, _Hayley thought, watching as Hallie and Luke argued over who would get to play their Xbox game first and P and A as they watched the others' gifts like hawks to see who got the better one. Kennedy helped her little sister JoJo in opening her presents, neglecting her own completely, her mother made over.

Chelsea, who was laughing, suddenly winced in pain and nearly dropped her hot cocoa on A's head. One glance at Tommy, and we all knew what it meant.

"I'll go with them," Annabeth hurriedly said.

"I'll go, too," Audrick chimed in. We nodded and they quickly scurried out, Chelsea calm and smiling while Tommy and Audrick were flipping out about lists and bags and car seats and timing.

Hayley laughed as the kids starting ranting off questions to one other, mostly the younger ones questioning the older ones about where babies came from, the older not spilling anything.

_Now if only they can survive life as **ours**. _

* * *

><p><strong><em>I'm not saying that there's going to be a sequel, but one could be possible. I do really love these characters. <em>**

**_Maybe. I might. _**

**_This just opens it up while closing it. That's complicated, but, eh. :)_**

**_A Special Thanks To, _**

**_God. Jesus, without you, I never would've been able to do this, write this, keep people excited and reading for all forty chapter and upset to hear it was ending. :D_**

**_TheGreekGoddessAthena, aka Suzie. You've been so supportive, even when others weren't, and you've loved this since the beginning. :)_**

**_Jezi. Honey, you are my hero. You helped out so much with a couple of those chapter, and I can't thank you enough. :)_**

**_Di. We haven't talked in a while, and you stopped reading way too early. Maybe you'll come back and read it soon. Your best pal, Future. _**

**_And all of my reviewers! From names to begging, you've all helped out and inspired me so much. I love you all. :D_**

**_PEACE LOVE AND GOD BLESS HUNNIE BUNNIE DUNNIES3_**

**_~FutureNovelist887_**


End file.
